Drivers for Change
The following factors have and will continue to bring about changes to the timber industry - changes to which your organization must adapt.

Regulatory Changes
Governments and financial institutions are increasingly demanding a greater level of product and client assurance -

• Five EU governments including Britain's have adopted or are adopting procurement policies that require that only certified wood is utilised in state funded construction projects
• On 1st April 2006 the government of Japan introduced a procurement policy favouring wood products that have been harvested in a legal and sustainable manner
• International financial institutions such as HSBC have lending policies giving preference to customers who have FSC or equivalent accreditation or who are following a credible path to achieving such compliance

Adverse Publicity Creating Negative Stakeholder Perceptions
The timber industry faces increasing examination by governments, NGOs and consumers and if your supply chain is not managed appropriately your company faces the risk of significant adverse publicity if it is discovered that -

• Timber comes from an unknown or illegal source
• Inaccurate or misleading claims have been made about the source of timber

Consumer Demands For Certified Timber
There is an ever increasing demand for timber products that originate from a known and legal source. In 2006 the EIA recommended that consumers

• Do not trust the environmental assurances of retailers unless they can be backed up by independent verification
• Only buy timber products that have been independently verified as legally sourced with a full chain of custody validation

Responding to Change
There are many hurdles that can and will be encountered when trying to respond to the demand for change. Two key issues are -

Illegal Timber & Timber From Unknown Sources

• Timber can be considered clearly illegal if it does not originate within the boundaries of a licensed forestry concession that is operating in accordance with its licence
• Conversely if the source of timber is not known, by a producer or retailer, then it s impossible to prove that the timber is from a legal source and will therefore probably be illegal

Lot Swapping
f the chain of custody for all batches of timber is not rigourously monitored it is possible that -

• Batches of timber from a known source, even one that is credibly certified, can be swapped for timber of the same species but of a higher quality that is from an illegal or unknown source

The Solution

Independent & Cost Effective Third Party Verification
The EIA and the World Wide Fund for Nature's Global Forest & Trade Network (GFTN) both advocate the use of independent 3rd party verification to establish the origin and legality of timber products. The challenge is to provide -

• Credible 3rd party verification, that
• Delivers in a cost effective manner, so that
• Certified timber can be competitive in the global marketplace

"Certisource is an industry driven initiative providing professional, credible, independent and cost effective, chain of custody verification to enable responsible consumers to eradicate illegal timber from their supply chains."