The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Assurance Services International (ASI) have found issues of volume mismatch and potential false claims in some transactions of FSC-certified wood pellets in East Asian countries. Source: Timberbiz
Selected certificate holders in Asia were required to participate in transaction verification for FSC wood pellets (W3.6 wood pellets) and all related transactions for the year 2020 (from 1st January to 31st December 2020).
This was after FSC and Assurance Services International received questions and allegations about the FSC-certified wood pellets supply chain’s integrity in the region, including that wood pellets might be sourced from illegitimate harvested forests and manufactured by non-certificate holders but carrying FSC claims.
In March 2021, FSC and ASI initiated a transaction verification analysis of the FSC-certified wood pellets (W3.6) supply chain in Asia. Transaction data of 139 certificate holders, from January – December 2020, was collected and analyzed.
The analysis shows that FSC-certified wood pellets are predominantly produced in Southeast Asian countries like Vietnam and Thailand and imported by East-Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea.
The preliminary results of the analysis highlight that: Vietnam is the main producer and exporter of FSC-certified wood pellets. Japan is the biggest importer of FSC-certified wood pellets.
Mismatches have been identified in export-import volume data. Instances of potential false claims have been identified.
Companies who are found to be responsible for violating FSC certification standards and norms face the possibility of having their trademark license agreements suspended or terminated.
