PEFC Chain of Custody Certification
February 2012
1
History of PEFC
Pan European Forest Certification Council
 Created in 1999 by European forest land owners as an umbrella
organisation to provide a framework for the mutual recognition of
credible national forest certification standards
 11 founding European nation members
Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification
 Canada the first non-European nation to join in 2001
 Name changed in 2003 to recognize growth beyond Europe
 Not a forest management certification standard but an
endorsement of national standards that meet the PEFC
Sustainability Benchmarks
 Exception is the PEFC Chain of Custody standard
2
35 member countries - 30 with endorsed standards
3
Argentina
Canada
Gabon
Malaysia
Slovenia
Australia
Chile
Germany
Netherlands
Spain
Austria
Czech Rep.
Ireland
Norway
Sweden
Belarus
Denmark
Italy
Poland
Switzerland
Belgium
Estonia
Latvia
Portugal
UK
Brazil
Finland
Lithuania
Russia
USA
Cameroon
France
Luxembourg Slovakia
Uruguay
PEFC Canada
4

Canada a member of PEFC International since 2001 and
represented by CSA International until 2009

PEFC Canada is a not-for-profit legal entity formed in 2008

Became the member of PEFC International for Canada in
January 2009

Represents interests of organizations certified to the CSA
Sustainable Forest Management standards

Manages PEFC Chain of Custody program for Canadian
companies (except for SFI participants)

Issues PEFC logo use licences to qualified organizations in
Canada
PEFC Presence: Globally→Canada→Ontario

35 member countries

32 endorsed national standards in 30 countries - 2 each in
Canada and USA

238 million ha certified globally in 27 countries
•
•

8,690 Chain of Custody certificate holders
•

184 in Canada
– 38 in Ontario
36,000 PEFC logo use licence holders
•
5
63 million ha certified to CSA SFM standards in Canada
– 2.4 million ha in Ontario
53 million ha certified to Sustainable Forestry Initiative in Canada
– 12.8 million in Ontario
79 in Canada
– 24 in Ontario
PEFC Chain of Custody Documents
PEFC ST 2002:2010 Chain of Custody of Forest Based Products Requirements
PEFC GD 2001:2011 Chain of Custody of Forest Based Products Guidance for Use
PEFC ST 2001:2008 PEFC Logo Usage Rules - Requirements
6
Certified Material Accepted in PEFC COC
Material from forests 3rd party certified to following standards:
7

CAN/CSA-Z809 Sustainable Forest Management

CAN/CSA-Z804 SFM for Woodlots and Other Small Area Forests

Sustainable Forestry Initiative

American Tree Farm System

any of the other 28 national forest certification standards endorsed
by PEFC
What to do to get certified – PEFC COC Details

Scope

COC Requirements – Physical Separation

COC Requirements – Percentage Based Methods
•
•
8
Average Percentage Method
Volume Credit Method

Sale of Certified Products

Controversial Sources – Non-certified raw material

Management System Requirements

Complaints

Subcontracting

Multisite Organization Chain of Custody

Social, Health and Safety Requirements
Scope
9

PEFC Chain of Custody applies to forest based products

Can be used by any organization harvesting, transporting,
handling or processing forest based material at any stage from
forest to final consumer

Chain of custody is used in connection with the definition of
certified material in PEFC endorsed forest certification standards

Labelling of products is an optional communication tool which
may be incorporated into the chain of custody process
Scope
PEFC Standard Definitions
10

Chain of custody of forest based products - Process of
handling of information on the origin of forest based products
which allows the organisation to make accurate and verifiable
claims on the content of certified material

Certified material - Raw material whose origin is covered by the
chain of custody claims

Certified product - Product which is claimed as including
certified material whose content is verified by chain of custody
Physical Separation
11

Organisations should use physical separation as the preferred
option:
• where certified material is not mixed with uncertified material, or,
• where certified material can be identified during the whole
process

Physical separation can be achieved by:
• physical separation in terms of production and storage space, or,
• physical separation in terms of time, or,
• clear identification of the certified material during the process
Percentage Based Methods

Percentage based method of chain of custody applies to
organisations that are mixing certified material with uncertified
material
Calculation of certification percentage:
Where:
• Pc = Certification percentage
• Vc = Volume of certified material
• Vo = Volume of other material
12
Percentage Based Methods
Product Group

Certification percentage is calculated for a specific product group

The product group is associated with:
a single product type, or,
a group of products which consist of the same or similar input
material, i.e. species, sort, etc.
1.
2.
13

Material used in the product group must have same unit of
measurement or units that can be converted to the same unit of
measurement

Product group must be produced at a single production site
Percentage Based Methods

1.
2.

14
Certification percentage can be calculated as either:
simple percentage, or,
rolling percentage
For rolling percentage the claim period cannot exceed 3 months,
i.e. the certification percentage claim is calculated from the
average volume of raw material used during the previous 3
months
Average Percentage Method
15

Organisations using the average percentage method (either
simple or rolling percentage) apply the calculated certification
percentage to all the products covered by the product group

There is no minimum threshold for the certified percentage

Example: If the certified percentage calculated for the 3 month
claim period is 54 %, all products covered by the product group
can be sold as 54 % PEFC Certified
Volume Credit Method




16
The volume credit method is used to distribute the certified
volume of raw material over a portion of output product
Example: If the raw material for 100 tonnes of output product is
54% certified, then the 100 tonnes can be sold as 54% certified
using the average percentage method, or 54 of the 100 tonnes
cold be sold as 100% certified using the volume credit method.
No certification claim can be made on the remaining 56 tonnes
of product
The volume credit can also be distributed to the product at less
than 100% certified
Example: The organisation can decide to distribute the 54
tonnes of volume credits to sell product as 70% certified, where
54tonnes / 70% = 77 tonnes available for sale as 70% certified
Volume Credit Method
17

The organisation using volume credit must create and manage a
credit account in a single measurement unit

The credit account must be established for individual product
types of the product group or for the whole product group where
the same measurement unit is applied to all product types

Certified credits can be accumulated in the credit account for a
maximum of 12 months, meaning that if the total credits are not
used in a 12 month period then the credits accumulated 13
months ago are lost
Sale of Certified Products
18

At any point of transfer or sale of certified products the organisation
must provide:
• a copy of a forest management or chain of custody certificate, or,
• another document confirming the supplier’s certified status, or,
• access to a copy of the chain of custody certificate, i.e. on a
website

The organisation must use a single type of document with each
delivery of the certified products, i.e. invoice or delivery slip
Sale of Certified Products

19
The document accompanying each delivery of certified products
must include the following information:
• customer identification
•
supplier identification
•
product identification
•
quantity of delivery for each product
•
date of delivery / delivery period / accounting period
•
formal claim including certified percentage for each product
•
the number of the supplier’s chain of custody certificate or
other document confirming the supplier’s certified status
Controversial Sources

PEFC Chain if Custody requires avoiding raw material from
controversial sources, defined as forest management which is:
(a) not complying with local, national or international legislation, in particular
related to the following areas:
– forestry operations and harvesting, including conversion of forest to
other use
– management of areas with designated high environmental and cultural
values,
– protected and endangered species, including requirements of CITES,
– health and labour issues relating to forest workers,
– indigenous peoples’ property, tenure and use rights,
– payment of taxes and royalties,
(b) utilising genetically modified organisms,
(c) converting forest to other vegetation type, including conversion of
primary forests to forest plantations.
20
Controversial Sources

The organization must have a Due Diligence System (DDS) to
avoid raw material from controversial sources

Three steps to implementing a DDS:
1.
2.
3.
21
supplier’s self declaration that material supplied does not
originate from a controversial source
risk assessment indicating either a “low” or “high” risk of material
coming from a controversial source
management and verification program for material coming from
sources that have been assessed as “high risk”
Management System Requirements
22

The organisation must have a management system to ensure
correct implementation and maintenance of the chain of custody

At a minimum the management system must:
• document the commitment to implement and maintain the
chain of custody
• appoint a manager with overall responsibility and authority for
the chain of custody
• establish documented procedures for all elements of chain of
custody
• establish personnel responsibilities, authorities and
competencies
• regularly review the chain of custody and its compliance
• conduct internal audits at least annually
Complaints
23

The organisation must establish procedures for dealing with
chain of custody related complaints from suppliers, customers
and other

Upon receipt of the complaint, the organisation must:
• acknowledge the complaint to the complainant
• gather and verify all necessary information to evaluate and
validate the complaint and make decision on the complaint
• formally communicate the decision on the complaint and of the
complaint handling process to the complainant
• ensure that any appropriate corrective and preventive actions
are taken
Subcontracting

24
Where subcontractors are used in the manufacture of certified
products the subcontracted activities must be covered by the
organisation’s chain of custody with the following considerations:
•
applies to work within or outside the organisation’s site
•
material received by the subcontractor must be physically
separated from other material and returned after the
subcontracted work is completed, or,
•
the organisation with the chain of custody remains responsible
for the sale or transfer of the product to the customer
•
organisation shall take full responsibility for the all the
subcontracted activities
•
subcontractor activities must be covered by the internal audit
Multisite Organization Chain of Custody
25

Chain of Custody can be implemented within a network of sites:
• either multi-sites within a single organization/company, or,
• a group of small independent companies

Multisite organizations must have an identified “central office” which:
• represents the group in the certification process
• provides a contractual relationship within the group and with the
certification body
• provides a commitment and procedures to implement and
maintain the chain of custody system
• operates an internal audit program

Individual sites are responsible for implementing the chain of
custody requirements applicable to their specific site
Social, Health and Safety Requirements
2.1 The organisation shall demonstrate its commitment to comply
with the social, health and safety requirements defined in this
standard.
2.2 The organisation shall demonstrate that:
• workers are not prevented from associating freely, choosing
their representatives, and bargaining collectively with their
employer,
• forced labour is not used,
• workers, who are under the minimum legal age, the age of 15,
or the compulsory school attendance age, which ever is
higher, are not used,
• workers are not denied equal employment opportunities and
treatment,
• working conditions do not endanger safety or health.
26
Certifying to the PEFC COC Standard
27

All PEFC Chain of Custody certifications must be carried out by a
qualified independent 3rd party certification body

All certification bodies are accredited to ISO Guide 65 General
Requirements for Bodies Operating Product Certification Systems
by an International Accreditation Forum member such as
Standards Council of Canada (SCC) or the American National
Standards Institute (ANSI)

Audit cycle includes an initial certification audit, an annual
surveillance audit and a recertification audit every 5 years

Certificates are valid for 5 years
Who can certify - Qualified Certification Bodies
1.
ALKO-Cert, Germany
2.
BMG Trada Certifiering, Sweden
3.
BM Trada Certification, United Kingdom
4.
Bureau de normalisation du Québec, Québec City
5.
Bureau Veritas, Houston
6.
Control Union Canada, North Vancouver
7.
KPMG PRI, Vancouver
8.
PricewaterhouseCoopers, Vancouver www.pwc.com/sustainability
9.
QMI-SAI Global, Toronto
10. Scientific
11. SGS
28
www.alko-cert.de
www.bmgtradacert.se
www.bmtrada.com
www.bnq.qc.ca
www.certification.us.bureauveritas.com
www.controlunion.com
www.kpmg.ca/performanceregistrar
www.qmi.com
Certification Systems, Emeryville www.SCScertified.com
Systems and Services Certification, Toronto www.ca.sgs.com
PEFC Canada Chain of Custody Fees

PEFC Canada pays membership fees to PEFC International in
part based on the number of PEFC COC certificates in Canada

PEFC Canada charges an annual notification fee based on the
number sites included in the scope of the COC certificate

Fee collected by Certification Bodies on behalf of PEFC Canada
Number of Sites on
COC Certificate
Annual Fee
1
$500
2
$1,000
3 – 10
$1,500
11 – 20
$2,000
21 – 30
$2,500
31 – 40
$3,000
41 +
$3,500
PEFC Logo Use
On-product label
30
Off-product label
PEFC Logo Use
31

PEFC logo use requires a logo use licence issued by PEFC
Canada on behalf of PEFC International

Logo use licences available for 4 groups of users:
• Group A: National governing bodies i.e. PEFC Canada
• Group B: Forest owners and managers with PEFC endorsed
forest certification, including individual and group certificates
• Group C: Forest related industries with PEFC Chain of Custody
• Group D: Organizations using the PEFC off-product label for
promotional and educational purposes

On-product of the label use requires minimum of 70% of PEFC
certified product or recycled material
PEFC Logo Use

32
PEFC Canada charges an annual logo use fee based on the
number of sites included in the scope of the chain of custody
certificate
Number of Sites on
COC Certificate
Annual Fee
1
$250
2
$500
3 – 10
$750
11 – 20
$1,000
21 – 30
$1,250
31 – 40
$1,500
41 +
$1,750
For More Information
33

PEFC International at http://www.pefc.org/

PEFC Canada at http://www.pefccanada.org/