Program for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)

The PEFC provides an assurance mechanism to purchasers of wood and paper products that they are promoting the sustainable management of forests.

The role of PEFC is to provide a framework for the development of mutual recognition for national or sub-national forest certification schemes that have been developed locally according to internationally recognized requirements for sustainable forest management systems.

Key Benefits

Create Market Opportunities

Consumers are increasingly demanding products they buy come from a socially responsible and environmentally sustainable source.

Meet Compliance Requirements

PEFC-certified products originate from PEFC-certified forests managed in compliance with national and international legal forest requirements.

Secure Your Supply

Secure your supply of responsibly sourced materials by accessing the worlds largest source of certified, sustainably managed forests.

Provide Supply Chain Traceability

PEFC Chain of Custody certification tracks the supply chain from the source to the final product to ensure sustainability.

What Is It?

The PEFC seeks to contribute to the environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of forests for present and future generations.

The role of PEFC is to provide a framework for the development of mutual recognition for national or sub-national forest certification schemes that have been developed locally according to internationally recognized requirements for sustainable forest management systems.PEFC has endorsed the SFI 2015-2019 and CERTFOR forest management standards.

The PEFC Council

The PEFC Council (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes) is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organization. It was founded in 1999 to promote sustainably managed forests through independent third-party certification.

PEFC is a global umbrella organization for the assessment of and mutual recognition of national forest certification schemes developed in a multi-stakeholder process. These national schemes build upon the inter-governmental processes for the promotion of sustainable forest management, a series of on-going mechanisms supported by 149 governments covering 85% of the world’s forest area.

PEFC’s Membership

PEFC’s membership includes 32 independent national forest certification systems, of which 21 to date have been through a rigorous assessment process involving public consultation and the use of independent consultants to provide the assessments on which mutual recognition decisions are taken by the membership. These 21 schemes account for over 175 million hectares of certified forests producing millions of tons of certified timber to the marketplace, making PEFC the world’s largest certification scheme. Of the certification schemes endorsed by PEFC, SAI Global conducts audits to SFI 2015-2019 and CERTFOR forest management standards.