A Guide to FSC and SFI Chain of Custody Certification

Objectives Introduction to the FSC and SFI What is Chain of Custody Certification? Establish internal handling procedures

Forest Stewardship Council The FSC is responsible for Chain of Custody Certification. The FSC is an international non-profit organization founded in 1993 as a voluntary and market-based mechanism for ensuring that the world’s forests are managed in an environmentally responsible, socially acceptable and economically viable manner.

Under FSC certification, forestry companies are independently audited to meet the FSC’s strict forest management standards. Beyond the forest, all producers along the supply chain must be chain of custody certified. At every stage of manufacturing or distribution, the fibre going into a product is tracked and identified.

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The FSC system not only makes certain that wood fibre used in a product is from a sustainable source, but it ensures that claims regarding the recycled content of products are verifiable. In an unbroken chain of commitment from forest to consumer, the FSC label carries the promise that a product comes from a forest friendly source.

Not FSC -Possible Controversial SourcesOf course not all wood and paper products are FSC certified. Let’s take a brief look at a few possible controversial sources.

The FSC will never certify products that come from:

Illegal logging Rain forest endangered regions Violate human rights Plantations

FSC Certified Well-Managed ForestsForest management according to FSC’s internationally recognized standards delivers environmental services to local and global communities, including clean air and water, and contributes to mitigating impacts of climate change.

FSC directly or indirectly addresses issues such as illegal logging, deforestation and global warming and has positive impacts on economic development, environmental conservation, poverty alleviation and social and political empowerment.

FSC Mix Source products are made with a combination of Virgin and Recycled fiber.

Products with the FSC Recycled label support the re-use of forest resources which helps to reduce further use of live forest resources.

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What does it mean for forests?FSC forest management certification has many benefits that can be seen on the ground in the forests themselves. Here are a few examples.

Waterways are protected; Wildlife habitat and species are protected; High conservation value forests are preserved; Forest management practices are monitored annually; Genetically modified trees are not used; Local people are involved in forest mgmt.; The rights of Indigenous Peoples are respected.

What is Chain of Custody (CoC) Certification?

Chain of Custody certification applies to all members in the supply chain for an FSC-certified wood or paper product. FSC-certified fiber is tracked through the entire supply chain - from forest, to pulp mill, to manufacturer, to distributor, to printer.

This guarantees that when a printed brochure, annual report or catalogue carries the FSC product label, it has come from a responsibly managed forest and can be traced back to the FSC-certified forest from which it came.

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What Does CoC Mean for Kelly Paper and Spicers Paper?Chain of Custody Certification of a print operation targets 5 main areas of operation:

Purchasing and Receiving; Production; Records and Summaries; Personnel and Training; Product Labeling

Purchasing and Receiving; FSC-certified printers must procure FSC-certified papers from an FSC-certified paper merchant,

distributor or manufacturer.

Production Separate FSC from non-FSC paper Indicate Kelly Paper or Spicers Paper FSC COC# on Customer Invoice

Records and summaries Maintain records of FSC inputs and outputs for 5 years

Personnel and Training All personnel must be trained and training records kept for 5 years Certified printers are also responsible for applying the product label to printed materials for

their clients. Maintain records of FSC inputs and outputs for 5 years All personnel must be trained and training records kept for 5 years

FSC Label Certified printers are also responsible for applying the product label to printed materials for

their clients.

Chain of Custody certification will also requires production of FSC jobs to be tracked and separate from non-FSC jobs. Records must be kept for measuring what FSC inputs are coming in, being used, and going out. Personnel must understand how these processes work and what is required for FSC jobs.

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FSC Labels

The “100%” label category applies to papers manufactured with 100% FSC-certified wood fiber from FSC-certified forests.

The “Mix” label applies to papers with a combination of FSC-certified wood fiber, recycled content, and controlled sources (controlled sources are inputs verified to have not been illegally harvested, harvested in a way that violates workers’ or indigenous peoples’ rights, contain genetically modified trees, etc.

The “Recycled” label applies to papers manufactured with post-consumer recycled waste. As part of their CoC certification, paper manufacturers are audited to ensure that their recycled content comes from a true post-consumer source.

SFISFI stands for - Sustainable Forestry Initiative

Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. is a fully independent, charitable organization that manages one the largest and most widely accepted certification programs in the world.

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There are three SFI certification standards:

1. Forest Management

2. Chain of custody and

3. Fiber sourcing

All require third party audits to maintain an internationally recognized and trusted standard of practice.

The SFI program stands apart from other certification programs by addressing the fact that 90% of the world’s forests are not certified to a credible standard. Through SFI fiber sourcing certification, providers who use certified fiber can assure customer it is from legal, responsible sources, and not from sensitive areas as defined by Conservation International. It also demonstrates they are promoting sustainable forest management in North America through training, education and research requirements.

Not SFI - Possibly Controversial SourcesJust as with FSC there are products that cannot be SFI certified. Let’s take a look at some controversial sources that are not SFI certified.

The SFI will not certify products from these sources:

• Rainforests endangered

• Illegal logging

SFI LabelsHere are the SFI labels:

• SFI 100% certified

• SFI Recovered

• SFI Certified with Other

• SFI Other, not certified

• SFI Supplier

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What's the Difference between FSC and SFI?FSC and SFI are very similar organizations certifying wood products and related manufacturing processes.

FSC has an outward focus to give buyers and consumers’ confidence. SFI has an inward focus to help members improve forestry and manufacturing processes

practices. FSC does not certify wood products made from plantation harvested trees while SFI does. Generally FSC is much stricter in the certification process and considered as a “Greener

Certification”.

Internal Procedures for FSC and SFIThe purpose of this procedure is to document the steps necessary for Kelly Paper and Spicers Paper to verify that paper being sold as FSC, SFI, PEFC certified meets the chain-of-custody requirements as outlined by Smartwood and Price Waterhouse Cooper.

Any questions or problems discovered during routine checks or during an audit will be communicated to Mike Reed at our corporate office.

Any issues discovered should be resolved within 45 days. In addition, we will conduct internal audits no less than once a year to verify that we continue to meet the chain-of-custody requirements.

PurchasingAt Spicers Paper, the purchasing function is the responsibility of Customer Service Reps. (CSR’s), Buyer and Merchandisers. When a customer places an order with Spicers Paper or Kelly Paper and specifies they need a FSC, SFI, the CSR, Buyer or Merchandiser will enter the order into the system using the item code that has been setup with the appropriate FSC or SFI product description. The Buyer will specifically ask the question as to the FSC or SFI category is being used.

If an item code does not already exist for this product, a new item code will be created with the proper FSC or SFI product description. After the order is entered in the Spicers Paper or Kelly Paper system, the CSR, Buyer or Merchandiser will verify that the customer order acknowledgement and the purchase order to the supplier each have the item with the proper FSC or SFI description on them.

The CSR, Buyer or Merchandiser will also confirm which FSC or SFI label of category the end user is ordering. If the order is placed with the mill verbally, the CSR, Buyer, or Merchandiser will specify that their order calls for FSC or SFI certified product(s). The CSR, Buyer or Merchandiser will request a mill confirmation once the order is placed.

Upon receiving the confirmation, they will review the mill order confirmation to verify that the product description is for FSC or SFI certified product. If it is not, the CSR, Buyer or Merchandiser will contact the mill to have the order revised and a new order confirmation will be requested.

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Sales, ShippingFor orders that have FSC or SFI items on them, when the mill invoice is received by Spicers Paper or Kelly Paper the billing clerk will review the item description to be sure that the paper shipped was an FSC or SFI certified item and also confirm that the Mill FSC or SFI Certification Code, and category of mixed fiber percentage is noted.

If the mill invoice does not reference the FSC or SFI certified item, then the billing clerk will bring this to the attention of the appropriate CSR, Buyer or Merchandiser who will then contact the mill to get clarification on what item was actually shipped. If an FSC or SFI item was shipped, a revised invoice will be requested to reflect the proper item.

The Spicers Paper or Kelly Paper invoice to the customer will have the FSC or SFI product description on it as well as the Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper FSC Certification Code.

WarehouseReceiving – All warehouse personnel will look for FSC or SFI labels on products, and verify that shipping documents include the suppliers FSC or SFI number and category of origin. Information on products received without the appropriate information will immediately be given to the branch FSC or SFI coordinator.

Stock put away – FSC or SFI paper will be stored in a separate bin location away from non-certified items.

Cutting – All cutting is job specific, and for those locations that provide this service the process is as follows:

Information for cutting is provided on a document from customer service or purchasing. Cutting is performed as instructed, and all records of cutting are kept for five years.

Record Keeping

Procedures for maintaining records pertaining to certification: All records covering certified product, including production, public information, certified

material purchase and certified product sales will be kept on record (either electronically and/or in hard copy form) are kept for a period of 5 years.

Procedures for compiling annual audit data for auditors: Prior to the annual audit, a summary will be prepared showing certified material purchases,

inventory, and sales as well as a listing of public information and advertising. Spicer Paper and Kelly Paper acknowledge that auditors will review orders with their respective

suppliers, suppliers’ paperwork to Spicers Paper or Kelly Paper, customer purchase orders, customer invoices, logo approval requests to certification body, and etc.

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Training

Training Procedures – all Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper employees will be trained using then Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper online training system as required when certification changes occur. At a minimum, training will be conducted at least once per year and in addition to covering any new material, a review of the basic control procedures for orders with certified items will also take place.Copies of the FSC and SFI standards will be given to each location.

Training Records – written documentation will be maintained of all training that will be conducted. This documentation will be held for auditor review. Records of all training will be kept for five years.

Label/Logo Use Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper Marketing will go through the liaison for the certification body and

must approve all use of FSC and SFI logos. Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper Marketing will send to FSC and SFI for approval. Copies of approval will be attached to sample of printed piece, and will be made available upon

request.

Additional MeasuresIn addition to the above, the following actions will be taken and coordinated by the corporate office:

Keep our FSC, SFI, and PEFC product guide up to date, and make available upon request Quarterly verify status of our mill suppliers using www.info.fsc.org, www.sfiprogram.org , and

www.pefc.org Hold annual internal audits with each Spicers Paper Location. Keep all FSC, SFI, PEFC records for five years

Cutting:Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper as an accommodation to our customers, the company will, on occasion, cut sold product from a larger sheet size to smaller sheet sizes. Not every Spicers Paper location has a cutter, and the few that do use our cutters primarily for sample requests

Sheeting and Converting:For each order, the operator is responsible for filling out the Sheeter Worksheet. This form tracks all details on the specifications of the job and tracks the production of the order by the specific roll identification number including sheets produced for each pallet number, weight and lineal footage.

It also tracks the waste for each order and the total sheet count and weight for the job. This form is then combined with the Original Order Copy, and the mills labels from each roll which are then inserted into a job jacket. Copies are sent to both the customer during delivery and to the warehouse office to be kept on file.

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Special NoteAll parties should understand that FSC and SFI are not interchangeable. For example, if an FSC item is ordered by a customer, an FSC certified item must be shipped; otherwise the chain of custody will be broken. It is not sufficient to ship an item that is certified by one group in place of an item that is certified by a different group.

Final NoteThe procedural content of this presentation is covered in detail in the FSC-SFI-PEFC CERTIFICATION – DOCUMENTED CONTROL SYSTEM

A Guide to FSC and SFI Chain of Custody Certification Quiz

Based on the material in this presentation, chose the correct answer for each questions.

1. FSC stands for:a. Forest Stewardship Councilb. Forest Safety Conservationc. Federal Sustainability Council

2. The FSC will never certify products that come from: a. Illegal loggingb. Rain forest endangered regionsc. Violate human rightsd. Plantationse. All of the abovef. None of the above

3. CoC stands for:a. Chain of Custodyb. Chain of Consumersc. Chain of Certification

4. SFI stands for:a. Sustainable Forest Incorporatedb. Sustainable Forestry Initiativec. Successful Forest Interests

5. This presentation covers FSC and SFI internal procedures for Spicers Paper and Kelly Paper.a. True b. False

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