What is the FSC? 

The FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) is an international non-profit organisation established in 1993. FSC certification is a widely recognised and respected mark of sustainable forest management, with a particular emphasis on the ecological values of forests. The purpose of the certification is to preserve healthy and vibrant forests for future generations, while ensuring that forest products come from responsibly managed sources.

FSC certification sets high standards for forest management, ensuring the protection of biodiversity, respect for workers' rights and the well-being of communities. For example, FSC certification obliges forest owners to keep 5% of the forest area out of commercial use.

The demand for FSC-certified wood is high worldwide, as many wood product retailers and end-users prefer FSC-certified wood. In Finland, FSC certification has become more widespread since 2011 and today around 10% of Finland's commercial forests are FSC certified.

UPM Timber and FSC certification 

At UPM Timber, we continuously monitor the origin of our timber. We only use sustainably and legally harvested timber from responsibly managed forests. We use a certified timber origin monitoring system, and our timber procurement is controlled. Our sawmills have both PEFC (PEFC/02-34-05) and FSC Chain of Custody (FSC C086359) certificates.  

FSC certification requires regular audits and reporting by external experts to ensure that forest management is sustainable in the long term.

Both PEFC and FSC are forest management certification systems, but they differ slightly in their emphasis and standards. All UPM's forests in Finland, 522 000 hectares, are PEFC and FSC certified.

UPM Timber offers a wide range of FSC-certified timber, which means that our raw material comes from responsibly managed forests.