Tropical wood from certified sources: how reliable is it?

Almost every board on the timber market is advertised with the terms “sustainable”, “responsible” and “ecological”. In reality, however, massive deforestation, illegal logging and the destruction of valuable rainforest areas are on the agenda. How does that fit together?

Always legal – but rarely sustainable

The discrepancy between advertising and reality can be explained if you take a close look at the offers. Many traders refer to the legal origin of their timber, as the import of illegally harvested material has been prohibited by the EU’s Timber Trade Security Act (FLEGT) for over a year. However, legality says nothing about the type of cultivation, as this is assigned by the authorities of the exporting countries. In this case, wood that originally stood in an intact rainforest but has now been completely destroyed can be described as legal.

Seamless control thanks to FSC

The only reliable guide here is the certificate FSC 100% . This is awarded according to a chain of custody certification system, known as “ chain-of-custody “. With this COC certification, every part of the retail chain is checked by independent inspectors. The forestry industry, sawmill and trader must prove that they do not deliver more certified goods than they have received.

All wood products at Betterwood are FSC-certified or in the process of certification. We are also happy to tell you where our wood comes from and the principles according to which we work in the forest and sawmill.