FSC™ CoC Certification

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is a global nongovernmental organization that set standards for forest management and the respective supply chains. FSC promotes environmentally responsible and socially beneficial forestry. 

Further information can be found on the FSC web page: https://fsc.org/ 

“Chain of custody” is referring to the supply chain from the forest to the consumer. The certification of the supply chain ensures that FSC certified products contain only certified, recycled or controlled input material.

In general, companies must be certified if they want to sell products with an FSC claim in the supply chain, e.g.:

• label finished goods as FSC certified.
• Sell FSC-certified products with FSC claims on sales documents.
• Produce semi-finished products using FSC-certified materials (by manufacturing them, by mixing or adding forest materials to them, or by repackaging or relabeling them).
• Promote finished FSC-certified products (except finished and labeled products).

To become FSC certified, the following steps are relevant:

1. Get familiar with the FSC standards: The FSC standards are freely available on the FSC website: https://connect.fsc.org/document-centre. The standards are available in English, Spanish and French. Translation to other languages may be available on national FSC websites as applicable.
   For “Chain of Custody” the main standard is called FSC-STD-40-004: https://connect.fsc.org/document-centre/documents/resource/302.
   The main standard for the FSC logo use FSC-STD-50-001: https://connect.fsc.org/document-centre/documents/resource/225
2. Implement the FSC standard in your company: e.g. develop and implement documented procedures covering the standard requirements and train relevant staff.
3. Get certified by an accredited FSC Certification Body, e.g. TÜV SÜD:

• Contact us that you are interested in an FSC certification
• Based on basic information regarding your company we will provide you with a quotation for the FSC certification, i.e. relevant audit.
• Once the contract is agreed, TÜV SÜD plans and conducts an audit.
• If the audit confirms that FSC requirements are correctly implemented, TÜV SÜD issues a certificate and your certification status is published in the FSC database - https://search.fsc.org/
• The certificate is valid for 5 years. Every year a “surveillance audit” must be conducted to verify ongoing compliance with the FSC standard requirements.

During an FSC audit, the auditor assesses the procedures of the company. The auditor checks if the company’s procedures are compliant with the FSC standard requirements and correctly implemented. Relevant samples are checked during the audit, e.g. from purchase and sales documents of FSC products. In addition, workers are interviewed. If applicable the production and/or storage site of the company is visited during the audit. 

The duration of an audit is usually one day, but can be shorter or longer depending on the size and activity of the company.

Cost of an FSC audit consists of different aspects: The costs for the audit itself are detailed in the quotation that will be issued to you at your request.

Further, FSC charges a fee, the “Annual Administration Fee” (AAF). Details on this fee are published in the respective FSC policy -  https://connect.fsc.org/document-centre/documents/resource/221

Please send your request for an FSC trademark use to our email [email protected]. Include relevant information, such as the artwork, your company FSC license code, products used, size of the trademark and country of distribution of the product – if applicable.

• FSC is a globally trusted forest certification organization, with high recognition by consumers worldwide.
• Certified companies can demonstrate their commitment to responsible forest management and transparency and accountability in forest supply chains.
• Certified companies can label their products with an FSC logo, to show that the products come from certified forests or other responsible sources.
• FSC certification offers opportunities to deliver to supply chains and customers requesting the certification.
• Companies can use FSC certification as a tool to support demonstrating compliance with relevant supply chain legislation.

Go to the FSC database - https://search.fsc.org/. All certified companies must be published in this database. You can see the validity of the certificate, and also the scope of the certificate, e.g. the products included and sites (in case of a multi-site).
Note: FSC certified companies are not necessarily selling FSC certified products. A product is only FSC certified, if there is an FSC claim on the sales documents!

FSC developed the “Regulatory Module” to support companies to align with the European Union “Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). Companies can get certified according to this voluntary module in addition to the Regulatory Module. See details https://fsc.org/en/fsc-eudr

The FSC Regulatory Module offers the following advantages:

• Clearly described requirements that companies need to implement in regards to their Due Diligence System.
• Easy access to relevant information if the supply chain is FSC certified.
• FSC Country Risk assessments (including potentially also mitigation measures) -
• “FSC Trace” as a tool to trace information from the forest of origin.

Contact TÜV SÜD for getting certified according to the FSC Regulatory Module!

• TÜV SÜD is a trusted market leader for credible FSC certification.
• We are known worldwide for the high quality of our audits and performance of our auditors.
• Our experts are committed to a fast turnaround on approvals of submitted artwork when using the FSC trademark. 

What are the terms and conditions for FSC certification at TÜV SÜD?

The terms and conditions for FSC certification at TÜV SÜD are published on our website: https://www.tuvsud.com/cs-cz/vseobecne-a-obchodni-podminky-terms-and-conditions

How to file complaints or appeals related to FSC certification of TÜV SÜD?

Please go to our website https://www.tuvsud.com/cs-cz/cinnosti/audity-a-certifikace-systemu/fsc-coc-certifikace/fsc-coc-certification/procedure-for-dealing-with-complaints.

You can file any complaints on this website. You also find there the respective procedures for complaints and appeal.

For any general inquiries or feedback, feel free to also contact our FSC certification body at [email protected]

Further general information on TÜV SÜD FSC Certification Body:

• The FSC Certification Body of TÜV SÜD is located at TÜV SÜD Czech s.r.o. (FSC license code A000530).
  Details of our accreditation and any companies providing outsourced services are publicly available on the website of ASI - https://www.asi-assurance.org/ASIAccreditationDetail?cab=TSUD&program=FSC and ASI North America - https://asi-na.org/find-a-certifier/tuv-sud-czech-s-r-o-fsc/
• Details about operation of TÜV SÜD Group can be found in the annual report. Details about operation of TÜV SÜD Czech s.r.o. can be found in the annual report.