Wood certification gains importance
Furniture makers recognize value in being responsible
Heath E. Combs -- Furniture Today, April 14, 2008
HIGH POINT – Be it upholstery frames or case goods, it’s hard to discuss green furniture without mentioning where wood is sourced.
As a result, green-savvy furniture makers are putting more energy into verifying the sourcing for the wood they use and also finding new ways to communicate that information to consumers.
In February, officials with rustic-style teak wood producer Groovystuff said the company has initiated a third-party audit of its reclaimed wood product lines to set the stage for obtaining Forest Stewardship Council certification.
Based in Bonn, Germany, with a U.S. chapter in Washington, the FSC is a widely recognized non-profit group that sets standards for responsible forest management.
This market, Copeland Furniture is debuting its first complete line of FSC-certified furniture with on-product labeling. The company underwent a detailed evaluation in 2005 to obtain the certificate from the FSC.
Harden Furniture is another producer that has been a leader in this area. The company obtained certification from the Sustainable Forestry Initiative in 2002. The SFI program is a North American-based certification system with more than 152 million acres that are certified by a third party.
In addition, Harden recently became the first furniture manufacturer to achieve Silver Exemplary Status certification from the Sustainable Furniture Council, an industry group focused on promoting eco-friendly sourcing and business practices. Among the criteria for obtaining this certification, producers must document that 15% to 25% of the wood that they use for their furniture comes from FSC-certified forests.
“With only 10% of the world’s forests certified to any system, recognizing credible third-party certification programs like SFI rewards the leaders in responsible forest management, while still meeting the needs of the marketplace,” said Lisa Stocker, director of community outreach and government affairs for SFI.
“When you see an SFI label on a forest product, you can feel good about purchasing it. Supporting certified forests help keep our forests in forests, while providing benefits such as wildlife habitat, water quality and local communities,” Stocker added.
Promoting responsible wood sourcing is the main focus of the Sustainable Furniture Council at this point, said Susan Inglis, SFC’s executive director and the owner of import source From the Mountain.
Deforestation is the third-largest source of carbon emissions on the planet, after buildings and transportation, she said.
Obtaining wood from certified sources may help counter negative publicity related to illegal logging.
Several outdoor furniture factories in Vietnam were recently cited by the London-based Environmental Investigation Agency for purchasing timber illegally logged in Laos, which has an export ban on logging.
There’s much at stake in programs aiming to establish that wood comes from responsibly harvested sources.
“Assuming it’s a credible certification, it’s the consumer’s assurance that the forests from where the product comes are well managed and maintained in a sustainable way,” said Tim Copeland, CEO of Copeland Furniture.
Copeland said he chose an FSC audit because it has a high level of credibility nationally and because the group has always been totally independent.
“That’s not to say that some of the industry or forestry programs don’t have good guidelines,” Copeland said. “It’s just that the FSC is considered the gold standard. Or as we like to say, the green standard.”
The American Home Furnishings Alliance announced last month that it will recognize the Appalachian Hardwood Verified Sustainable program in addition to the FSC and SFI programs as meeting the certified wood requirement for its new Sustainable by Design program.
The AHFA’s Sustainable By Design program requires that 3% of lumber be certified.
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