FAQ

Chain of Custody (CoC) is the process of tracking and recording the possession and transfer of wood and fiber from the forests of origin through the different stages of production - primary manufacturing, secondary manufacturing, wholesaling, and retailing - to the end user.

The SFI program has the most comprehensive approach to wood supply monitoring of any forest certification program in the world and can help provide this assurance with several options for chain of custody and on-product labels.

SFI participants are not only required to practice sustainable forestry on their own forests, but are also required by the SFI Standard to encourage their suppliers throughout their wood procurment systems to practice sustainable forestry, including reforesting following harvest and using best management practices for protecting water quality.

In order to qualify for the X% content label, a manufacturing facility must accurately demonstrate that a specified percentage of raw material in its product or production line carrying the label comes directly from a forest independently certified to either the SFI or CSA Standards. Non-certified material cannot originate from a "controversial source" as defined in Annex 2 of the Requirements for Fiber Sourcing, Chain of Custody, and Product Labels. The only way to qualify for this label is by using the percentage based method described in the chain of custody requirements.

At least "x" percent of the fiber used in this product line comes from independently certified forests.

In order to qualify for the volume credit label, a manufacturing facility must accurately demonstrate the percentage of raw material in its product or production line comes directly from a forest independently certified to either the SFI or CSA Standards. The volume credit method requires that the portion of products that carry the label will be proportionate to the percentage of certified content and will be considered as including 100% of certified raw material Non-certified material cannot originate from a "controversial source" as defined in Annex 2 of the Requirements for Fiber Sourcing, Chain of Custody, and Product Labels. The only way to qualify for this label is by using the volume credit method described in the chain of custody requirements.

In order to qualify for the X% recovered fiber claim, a manufacturing facility must accurately demonstrate that a specific percentage of the raw material used in the product or production line carrying the tagline is recovered wood fiber. You can qualify for this claim using any of the existing chain of custody methods. This is not a stand-alone label. Rather, the manufacturing facility must first qualify for one of the (non-100% certified content) labels.

100 Percent of the fiber used in this product is recycled fiber.

The SFI Standard requires participants to employ an auditable system to characterize the forest practices on the lands where they procure raw material. This is done by auditing the on-the-ground practices for a portion of the wood that is supplied to their processing facilities. The program emphasizes reforestation, the utilization of best management practices and enhancing the professional capacity of wood production operations. The SFI labeling program also recognizes landowners certified under the American Tree Farm System® and Canadian Standards Association (CSA) programs, who supply raw materials to SFI program participants as a source equivalent to forests certified under the SFI program for fiber sourcing labels. In addition to the procurement system, the SFI Standard requires participants to support various training and education programs, all of which is designed to assist landowners in improving their capacity to practice sustainable forestry on all types of forest lands.

SFI program participants who successfully achieve certification to the SFI Standard, and manufacturers who purchase at least two-thirds of their materials for a product or product line from certified SFI program participants (referred to as "secondary" manufacturers), may qualify to use a fiber sourcing label shown below by achieving certification to Annex 1 of the Requirements for Fiber Sourcing, Chain of Custody, and Product Labels. (Note: The "Certified Participant" label is only available to primary manufactures, whereas the "Certified Souring" label is available only to secondary manufactures)

The above fiber sourcing labels do not make claims about certified content.

The SFI Program benefits from the support of many conservation, government, professional and academic organizations.

Take a look at our benefits comparison chart for specific details on the differences between SFI and FSC.

When making a decision about the benefits of different Certification Programs, it is best to compare all of your options. Below we have SFI & FSC and how Signature Offset has the best of both worlds.

Numerous independent, unbiased, science-based studies comparing the SFI and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) programs have shown the two programs to be nearly identical when it comes to on-the-ground performance. These studies have been conducted by respected organizations like Metafore, The Pinchot Institute, and ProForest.

SFI participants have about 133 million acres. Participants practice sustainable forestry on all the lands they manage. They influence millions of additional acres through the training of loggers, foresters and family forest owners in best management practices and landowner outreach programs.

Yes, the quality and appearance of SFI certified paper is the same quality you have been used to in the past. In fact, in some cases it is better. There have been significant advances in the technologies used to recycle and re-claim Post Consumer Waste.