The Sustainable Forestry Initiative continues to grow on all fronts. Over the past 20 years, SFI has evolved into an internationally-endorsed forest certification program used by a diverse group including conservation organizations, community groups, the public sector, universities, indigenous peoples, and many more. SFI Inc.’s 18-member multi-stakeholder Board of Directors comprises three chambers, representing environmental, economic and social interests. Board members include representatives of environmental, conservation, professional and academic groups, family forest owners, public officials, labour and the forest products industry. With more than a quarter-billion acres/100 million hectares certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard, and many more positively influenced by SFI Fiber Sourcing, SFI has the necessary scale to directly influence the future of our forests.
We know that the overwhelming majority of organizations that ForestEthics names in their press releases continue to recognize the value of the SFI program and purchase paper certified to the SFI standard. When consumers buy products with the SFI label, they not only purchase a product that meets rigorous SFI certification requirements, such as measures to protect water quality, biodiversity, wildlife habitat, species at risk, indigenous values, funding conservation research, and protecting Forests with Exceptional Conservation Value, they are also helping grow future forests through the various programs SFI is involved with outside of the SFI Standards. This includes programs to sustain communities, fund conservation research, educate youth and work to continually improve and quantify conservation impact. Despite what a few activists claim, more and more companies are getting on board. Almost 20% of Fortune 100 companies are already using the SFI on-product label, and last year, more than 6,500 SFI label use requests were approved.
Smear campaigns do a disservice to all forest certification standards by undermining efforts to strengthen the connections between sustainable forests, thriving communities, and responsible purchasing. While we may have different approaches, we share the same goal – to protect forests, and we would welcome a candid discussion as to how we can work together to accomplish that goal. In a world where only ten percent of the forests are certified, we must work together to promote responsible forestry, because we all rely on healthy forests in our daily lives. We don’t want to silence our critics, but rather work in a meaningful way that makes SFI stronger and, in turn, ensures the long-term health and future of our forests, and the people that depend on them.
- Jason Metnick, Senior Vice President, Customer Affairs
Re: “Sustainable Forestry Initiative Losing Support”
The Sustainable Forestry Initiative continues to grow on all fronts. Over the past 20 years, SFI has evolved into an internationally-endorsed forest certification program used by a diverse group including conservation organizations, community groups, the public sector, universities, indigenous peoples, and many more. SFI Inc.’s 18-member multi-stakeholder Board of Directors comprises three chambers, representing environmental, economic and social interests. Board members include representatives of environmental, conservation, professional and academic groups, family forest owners, public officials, labour and the forest products industry. With more than a quarter-billion acres/100 million hectares certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard, and many more positively influenced by SFI Fiber Sourcing, SFI has the necessary scale to directly influence the future of our forests.
We know that the overwhelming majority of organizations that ForestEthics names in their press releases continue to recognize the value of the SFI program and purchase paper certified to the SFI standard. When consumers buy products with the SFI label, they not only purchase a product that meets rigorous SFI certification requirements, such as measures to protect water quality, biodiversity, wildlife habitat, species at risk, indigenous values, funding conservation research, and protecting Forests with Exceptional Conservation Value, they are also helping grow future forests through the various programs SFI is involved with outside of the SFI Standards. This includes programs to sustain communities, fund conservation research, educate youth and work to continually improve and quantify conservation impact. Despite what a few activists claim, more and more companies are getting on board. Almost 20% of Fortune 100 companies are already using the SFI on-product label, and last year, more than 6,500 SFI label use requests were approved.
Smear campaigns do a disservice to all forest certification standards by undermining efforts to strengthen the connections between sustainable forests, thriving communities, and responsible purchasing. While we may have different approaches, we share the same goal – to protect forests, and we would welcome a candid discussion as to how we can work together to accomplish that goal. In a world where only ten percent of the forests are certified, we must work together to promote responsible forestry, because we all rely on healthy forests in our daily lives. We don’t want to silence our critics, but rather work in a meaningful way that makes SFI stronger and, in turn, ensures the long-term health and future of our forests, and the people that depend on them.
- Jason Metnick, Senior Vice President, Customer Affairs