Sometimes we forget that the main material for the papermaking process is wood and the paper industry is linked to the way we manage the forest in order to preserve biological diversity while sustaining economic viability.

If you want to support forests when using paper products, you need to know what FSC is.

I hope FSC become a legal compulsary rule all over the world. In my opinion this is needed for a better world.

You may not have noticed, but the FSC logo appears on many products such as postcards, furniture, pens, books, notebooks, paper bags, gift bags, cartoon boxes.

WHAT IS FSC?

Longer version of FSC is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) was founded in 1993 and is an international non-profit organization that promotes responsible management of the world’s forests.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization reported that half of the world’s forests have already been altered, degraded, destroyed or repurposed.

Many of the forests that remain today suffer from illegal exploitation and other mismanagement.

The FSC was therefore established to prevent global deforestation.

PURPOSE AND BENEFITS OF FSC

Main purpose of FSC is to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests.

FSC paper means the paper comes from Managed Forests. The Benefits of Managed Forests is a contribution to both local and wider global communities, such as cleaner air and water, and to mitigating the effects of climate change.

Other benefits of FSC are preventing illegal logging, deforestation and global warming and have positive effects on economic development, environmental protection, poverty reduction and social and political empowerment.

If you see the FSC logo, it means that the product comes from responsible sources, is environmentally friendly, socially beneficial and economically viable.

WHERE IS FSC USED?

The FSC label is used in a wide range of industries including timber and non-timber products such as paper, furniture, pharmaceuticals, jewellery, and gives consumers the supportive responsibility of forests.

I strongly recommend that manufacturers become FSC members and inform the customer about FSC and use FSC paper products. This is needed in all industries, but more than others are needed, especially for the packaging industry to have this FSC certificate. Because paper bags and paper products are FMGC (fast moving products) and their consumption is very high.

Paper bags are used in a wide range of products in the fast food sector, fashion sector, food and non-food sectors and are consumed in large quantities every second. That’s why FSC is so important.


HISTORY :

Tropical forest destruction began in the 1980s, and in the 1990s the FSC, a worldwide voluntary certification, began to be discussed in the Americs to cover all forest types. This growth in UK and finally after 18 months of hard work, FSC was established in 1993 with the contributions of 10 countries.

Currently, National FSC Standards exist for the following countries (sorted by first year of attendance):

  • Brazilian Amazon (2001)
  • Peru (2001)
  • Colombia Natural Forests (2003)
  • Denmark (2004, 2018)
  • Netherlands (2004, 2018)
  • Canadian Boreal Forests (2004)
  • British Columbia (2005)
  • Chile Plantations (2005)
  • Spain (2006, 2020)
  • Colombia Bamboo (2006)
  • Luxembourg (2007, 2019)
  • Canadian Maritime Region (2008)
  • Sweden (2010)
  • Papua New Guinea (2010, 2017)
  • United States of America (2010)
  • Finland (2010)
  • Cameroon (2010, 2012)
  • United Kingdom (2011, 2017)
  • Central African Republic (2012)
  • Republic of Congo (2012)
  • Congo Basin Region (2012)
  • Serbian Kosovo (2012)
  • Ghana (2012)
  • Russian Federation (2012)
  • Germany (2012, 2017)
  • New Zealand (2012)
  • Democratic Republic of Congo (2012)
  • Gabon (2012)
  • Ireland (2012)
  • Republic of Indonesia (2013)
  • Poland (2013)
  • Czech Republic (2013)
  • Honduras (2014)
  • Nicaragua (2014)
  • Federal Republic of Brazil (2014)
  • Bulgaria (2016)
  • Metropolitan France (2016)
  • People’s Republic of China (2016)
  • Portugal (2016)
  • Italy (2017)
  • Romania (2017)
  • Kyrgyz Republic (2017)
  • Rwanda (2017)
  • Federal Republic of Germany (2017)
  • Republic of Uganda (2017)
  • South Africa (2017)
  • Switzerland and Liechtenstein (2018)
  • Brazilian Small and Low Intensity Managed Forests (2013)
  • Tanzania Mainland (2018)
  • Canada (2018)
  • Australia (2018)
  • Japan (2018)
  • Nepal (2018)
  • Malaysia (2018)
  • Vietnam (2018)
  • Bosnia and Herzegovina (2019)
  • Ukraine (2019)
  • Republic of Namibia (2019)

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO TO GET FSC CERTIFICATE?

All you have to do is apply to a certification body accredited by the FSC. You are charged a very small annual fee and must renew your accreditation each year and meet the expected rules. The main rule of thumb is that you need accurate tracking and traceability for the storage and use of FSC products.

RMpacks (RM Solutions Consultancy) provides you with products from FSC certified suppliers that follow strict environmental standards.RM Packs is committed to the use of environmental friendly solutions in the manufacturing of our packaging products. RM paper bags are made from FSC certified paper and 100% recyclable and 100% biodegradable and 100% recycled.