Responsible Sourcing

An important method of ensuring responsible and sustainable sourcing practices is forest certification.

In the United Kingdom, where certified products are often specified, supplier companies are motivated to obtain certifications to demonstrate that their products are responsibly sourced.

Certifications. This timber knowledge sheet highlights the role of certification in responsible sourcing and the most common schemes.

Certification of forests is achieved through third party programmes which verify that the forests are managed according to prescribed sustainable forestry standards. These programmes also involve the creation of a 'chain of custody' management system to ensure that the entire route of the timber is handled sustainably.

The three most recognised certifications in the UK are:

• FSC (Forest Stewardship Council): A global certification ensuring that forests are managed responsibly according to strict environmental, social, and economic criteria.
• PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification): An international certification that promotes sustainable forest management practices across the world.
• Grown in Britain: A national programme which certifies UK forests meet the strict sustainability criteria laid out in the UK Forestry Standard.

However, it is important to understand that certification is NOT responsible sourcing. Rather, it is one form of evidence that timber has been responsibly sourced.

Forest Sustainability: Deforestation. This timber knowledge sheet explores the role of responsible timber sourcing in preventing deforestation.

The impact of deforestation is readily apparent, as evidenced by the reduction in forested land in many regions over time. In Western Europe, the forested area has decreased by 46% compared to 2,000 years ago. Similarly, in North America, the forested area has decreased by 50% between 1600 and 1870.

These changes highlight the significant and ongoing loss of forested land in various parts of the world and the need for effective conservation and sustainable land-use practices. Agricultural expansion is the primary cause of deforestation today, accounting for approximately 90% of all cases.

Effective timber sourcing practices help maintain healthy forest ecosystems, protect endangered species, and promote biodiversity through sustainable forest management practices, such as selective logging and reforestation. This is essential for promoting the maintenance and growth of temperate and tropical forests.

In contrast to the past, the growth of responsible sourcing and sustainable forest management across regions such as Europe and North America has contributed to a growing forest area. This can be seen in the graph below from Our World in Data, sourced from the UN, which demonstrates growth in forested area (in green), and forest loss (in red).

Both in the UK and around the world, the responsible trade in sustainable timber products has a critical role to play in the protection of endangered species and supporting biodiversity. This includes the animals which live inside productive forests landscapes, as well as of trees themselves.

Domestically, the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) helps support the balance between achieving a sustainable income for rural communities, while providing habitats for the badgers, red squirrels, pine martens, otters, goshawks and other birds of prey you may find within commercial forests.

Overseas, similar principles to balance the needs of local communities and wildlife also apply. Successful implementation can help nature not just recover - but thrive. In certified forests in West Africa, you can find 2.7 times more gorillas and elephants than in non-certified forests [source].

Of course, trees themselves must also be protected – particularly where they are at risk of being endangered. A crucial international agreement that helps protect threatened species is CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora).

Responsible traders of timber products must fully comply with CITES legal requirements, which are enforced at the national level by UK government, to protect any tree species which is considered under threat (note this could be geographic of product restrictive).

We recommend using Species+ for the most up-to-date information on CITES listings, and to get in touch with the Animal and Plant Health Agency where a permit is required. Understanding and complying with CITES is critical for responsible timber suppliers.

Timber suppliers must ensure that the timber they buy and sell is legally sourced, responsibly managed, and traceable back to its origin. They are key in promoting transparency throughout the supply chain and can help eliminate illegal or unethical timber.

TDUK Due Diligence Toolkit. This free interactive step-by-step toolkit will help you understand your reporting obligation for UK Timber Regulations (UKTR). It comes with a free reporting template to get you started.

Timber Development UK members must demonstrate their responsible sourcing under our Responsible Purchasing Policy (RPP). Members supply chains are regularly audited, and they must demonstrate an ongoing commitment by attending regular training.

Members who have demonstrated their commitment to RPP can be seen reflected on their pages with an RPP certificate. These members are also able to participate in our ongoing timber you can trust campaign, aimed at highlighting responsible sourcing.

Timber suppliers can demonstrate sustainability by providing evidence they are tracking timber through the supply chain. This could include a mixture of third-party certification (such as FSC, PEFC or Grown in Britain), regular forest audits, or the use of satellite technology to track deforestation or illegal logging.

Many companies will use chain-of-custody systems to trace timber from its origin to its final product, ensuring transparency throughout the supply chain. This evidence is available in the form of Chain of Custody certificates, which are usually available for download from a company website (and are available on many of our members pages).

Timber specifiers must ensure the timber they procure is only sourced from trusted timber traders, who are able to demonstrate their legal compliance. It is essential that specifiers have a clear understanding of responsible sourcing, so they are able to appropriately interpret any evidence presented to them before completing a purchase.

Their requirement should be set out in Timber Procurement Policy, which forms part of the material specification, that insists timber and other wood based products are responsibly sourced, along with any evidence requirements, (e.g. full chain of custody to the site of use).

We strongly encourage all of our members to purchase timber from TDUK members who have an RPP certificate, as evidenced on their member profile. All of our specifier members should ensure they have basic knowledge of responsible sourcing, which can be demonstrated through our responsible sourcing CPD on Wood Campus.