When visiting a long time loyal client a few days ago to deliver a box of corn cups and set her up directly with commercial composting, I slipped by her desk on the way out to wave goodbye and she motioned me over and pointed down to a page in our wholesale catalog and with pride whispered to me that she had just ordered these brand name labels online - even though they cost 30% more than the generic brand.  

She was pointing to the label above the product that read "SFI certified".  "Sustainable Forestry Initiative," she whispered.  "Anything to save trees, right?"

I whispered back and thanked her as I always do - no client of mine does more for the environment than she does.  She's even gone so far as to influence upper management at her firm to establish a written company policy that permits employees to spend up to 35% more for organic, local or sustainable products and services.  But what I really wanted to tell her was that I wish we had 10 minutes more to talk about SFI certification.   As usual, though, she had two hats in one hand, was balancing four more on her head and grabbing for yet another with her right toe, so I made a mental note to send her some information instead.  

So Lindsay, this blog's for you.

First and foremost, our responsibility as consumers is to spend our money as wisely and as intentionally as possible and communicate to the market forces that sustainable products that are the ones we will seek and we will buy.   And since none of us has the time to research everything we want to be an expert in, we often are left to trust and hope the stuff we're buying really is organic, local and sustainable, which isn't getting any easier with all the green labeling and green washing going on these days.

The one thing to keep in mind as far as paper and furniture go - obviously the primary items in a business products catalog that come from trees - is the label to look for is FSC, not SFI.

While the "Sustainable Forestry Initiative" sounds impressive, it's important to know that SFI was created by the American Forest & Paper Association to market the timber industries' "business as usual" logging practices as being sustainable.  If you've ever heard of the term "greenwashing", this is a textbook case of it with the picture in the dictionary.  And the term "forestry initiative" is an oxymoron if its standards include large clearcuts, logging near rivers and streams damaging water supplies, and the widespread use of toxic chemicals and genetically modified trees as old growth and endangered forests are converted to tree plantations.

FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification, on the other hand, is the certification system supported by the international environmental community as well as the only certification system in the world accepted by the conservation, aboriginal and business communities.

The primary distinctions of FSC certification and why it is a more effective system for managing forests is that is based upon a required and consistently applied third-party audit (SFI is not), it uses performance-based measures instead of simply adopting management systems (the financial industry today is a great example of how management systems affect performance), and thirdly, FSC relies on measurable scientific data from a comprehensive set of detailed ecological indicators.   SFI's "indicators" are general at best.   And usually optional.

While there are many other key differentiating elements between the two certification standards (social criteria focusing on local communities and indigenous peoples, chain-of-custody certification, reporting, auditing, etc.), the key thing to understand is that FSC certification standards are vastly superior and have a clear and direct impact on protecting and preserving forests.   If interested in more information, visit the Dogwood Alliance, Forest Ethics, and the Environmental Paper Network's websites.   There are also several websites that photograph and document the difference between SFI and FSC certified forests. 

Just a few glances at some SFI certified forests and it becomes immediately clear why looking for and asking your office supply and furniture vendors for FSC certified products matters.