Certification Bodies

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

FSC works to improve forest management worldwide, and through certification creates an incentive for forest owners and managers to follow best social and environmental practices. The growing demand for FSC certified products tells forest owners that businesses and consumers prefer products from well managed forests.

FSC certification in South Africa is 24 years old, and the first Forest Management (FM) and Chain-of-Custody Certificates (COC) were issued in 1997.

At the moment there are 33 FM certificates covering timber, bamboo plantations and other forest landscapes.

The first National Risk Assessment and National Forest Stewardship Standard (NFSS) was fully approved in 2018 by FSC International. We have a NFSS in place for South Africa and Namibia, and Forest Management Standards for various countries in Southern Africa.

South African Bureau of Standards (SABS)

The South African Bureau of Standards is an autonomous body established as a result of an act of Parliament. The legislation concerning the SABS has been promulgated several times to cater for changing circumstances and to amend the scope of activities of SABS.

The group offers a full spectrum of standards development, information and conformity assessment services. By reorganizing the entity over the past few years it has managed to separate many of the activities to ensure impartiality and proper accountability of subsidy grants.

SABS has a proud record of participation in the development of international standards, and as an established standards body in a developing region, SABS has a significant role to play in the development of a Standards, Quality assurance, Accreditation and Metrology (SQAM) infrastructure in the South African Development Community (SADC). SABS hosts the secretariat of the regional standard coordination forum, SADCSTAN, and the legal metrology group, SADCMEL.

SABS is committed to providing standardization services that improve the competitiveness of South Africa through the understanding and development of standardization products and services within South Africa and internationally.

International Organisation for Standardization (ISO)

ISO is a global network identifying what International Standards are required by business, government and society. It develops these standards in partnership with these sectors that will put them to use, adopts them by transparent procedures based on national input and delivers them to be implemented worldwide.

Environmental Standards

ISO 14001:2015 – Environmental management systems

ISO 14001:2015 specifies the requirements for an environmental management system that an organization can use to enhance its environmental performance. ISO 14001:2015 is intended for use by an organization seeking to manage its environmental responsibilities in a systematic manner that contributes to the environmental pillar of sustainability. ISO 14001:2015 helps an organization achieve the intended outcomes of its environmental management system, which provide value for the environment, the organization itself and interested parties.

ISO 14004:2016 – Environmental management systems

ISO 14004:2016 provides guidance for an organization on the establishment, implementation, maintenance and improvement of a robust, credible and reliable environmental management system. The guidance provided is intended for an organization seeking to manage its environmental responsibilities in a systematic manner that contributes to the environmental pillar of sustainability. This International Standard helps an organization achieve the intended outcomes of its environmental management system, which provides value for the environment, the organization itself and interested parties.

South African Forestry Assurance Scheme (SAFAS)

SAFAS is an African not-for-profit organisation promoting and supporting responsible wood production and sustainable land use. We work in natural forests, tree plantations, mixed farms and agroforestry settings.

We believe that sustainable management starts with understanding your values and the values in the landscape. Then follows what actions need to be taken to preserve and enhance those values for the long-term.

We are dedicated to include all scales of operation, designing our systems and tools to ensure that smallholders as well as global corporates can access and benefit from them.

SAFAS is the governing body for the PEFC endorsed SAFAS Certification System.

We support the use of the VALUE BASED PLATFORM, a risk management system for sustainable land use decision making. This system is invaluable for anyone that needs to understand the sustainability risks associated with a forestry or farming enterprise.

The Value Based Platform serves and integrates information for land-users and decision makes.

Associated with this we have a network of associates that provide a range of environmental and land use related services.

Programme for Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)

PEFC sustainable forest management certification enables forest owners to provide assurances that they manage their forests in line with challenging environmental, social and economic requirements – balancing people, planet and profit. Hundreds of thousands of forest owners around the world, from small, family and community forests to large company owned forests, have achieved PEFC certification, covering more than 300 million hectares of forest.

SGB

SGS offers a range of services for the forestry, timber and paper industries including forest products chain of custody certification, forest management certification, forest plantation reviews and timber due diligence services.

As a world leader in certification and verification, we offer you unrivaled experience and a unique global network. This means you can benefit from our advice and expertise no matter where you – or your forests – are in the world.