How retailers can help protect forests

Corporate responsibility is a market advantage

Retailers are the important interface between the forest industry and an expanding number of consumers who make purchasing decisions on the basis of ethical principles.

Retailers have a crucial role to play to make a difference for the world's forests to:

• help raise the image of timber and the timber industry;
  
• marginalise illegal and unsustainable timber harvesting;
  
• secure sustainable timber supply for coming generations;
  
• secure the biodiversity of the world's forests, including the tropical rainforests which are considered to be the world's richest ecosystems.

A lack of differentiation in the marketplace

A major barrier to improve forest management standards around the world is the lack of differentiation in the marketplace between wood from well managed forests and timber from controversial sources.

Future wood supplies are threatened by unsustainable harvesting and illegal logging. This can only be changed if a critical mass of companies begin to apply good forest management practices, and if timber from proven well managed sources is preferentially traded and sold in the timber market, thereby marginalizing bad and illegal practices .

Currently the most effective way to guarantee the timber you sell comes from legal and non-controversial sources is through credibly certified timber such as the FSC.

However there are other steps you can do to improve your corporate responsibility as shown in these pages.