There’s a fairly widely held perception that the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR), and wider EU Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade Action Plan (FLEGT), were anti-illegal trade measures imposed on a reluctant timber industry.

But a different picture emerges from the perspectives of three of Europe’s best known consumer-facing timber and wood products companies.

These are global home product retailer, IKEA, UK DIY retailing leader (and part of the wider Kingfisher group), B&Q, and Swedish based international flooring giant, Kährs.

There’s no denial that illegal trading remains a problem. But they insist that they and the majority of the timber sector are as committed to eradicating it as anyone – and not just for the sake of image, or because it undercuts legitimate business.

Hence the industry’s earlier adoption of its own responsible procurement policies, not to mention third party environmental certification.

"Naturally we care too about green issues; forests, habitat, biodiversity," said IKEA global forestry manager Anders Hildeman.

"At IKEA it’s absolutely embedded and central to corporate social responsibility (CSR)."

Kährs environmental sustainability ambassador Bruce Uhler expressed similar sentiments.

"The forests and people at the sharp end who depend on them are core concerns for us.

In fact, our unequivocal environmental stance is one reason people join us.

Training and Communication
All three companies have the complexity of dual status under the EUTR; being both ‘operators’, which first place timber on the EU market, and traders, which sell it on.

But it did not require major revision of their anti-illegal timber strategies. Illegality risk assessment and due diligence were already integrated into their operations, and they are also all working towards 100% certified sustainable sourcing.

What the EUTR did do, however, was prompt renewed scrutiny and reappraisal of existing systems and a step up in communication on illegality risk.

"The regulation has specific due diligence requirements we had to accommodate," said Mr Hildeman. "We also undertook extensive EUTR training and, I believe, it also helped us strengthen legality messages to suppliers."

Supply chain communication is a B&Q focus too.

"EUTR made proof of legality harder, especially for paper-, chip-or fibre-based products due to complex supply chains," said Julia Griffin. "But the more we ask suppliers questions, the easier obtaining information and risk assessment becomes."

But further proof provided of the overall effectiveness of their existing legality controls is that none of the companies had to axe suppliers post EUTR.

"We pre-empt problems later by being clear on legality requirements with them from the outset," said Mr Uhler.

"Occasionally we’ve stopped sourcing from companies when documentation is inadequate, but we work with them and restart trading when problems are resolved," said Mr Hildeman. "I understand some operators dropped suppliers where due diligence was particularly challenging, but that wasn’t the EUTR’s objective. It disincentivises suppliers from raising legality standards in places which need most support.

It’s an area the EU should examine." What B&Q believes the European Commission (EC) should also now do is assess the EUTR’s performance to date and publish the findings.

"Currently there’s insufficient data on its impact on illegal logging and illegal trade flows into the EU," said B&Q sustainability manager-products Julia Griffin. "It’s vital to improving its operation and something we hope we’ll get from the EC’s current EUTR review."

Enforcement issues
One area where there’s solid consensus that the EUTR is not where it should be is enforcement uniformity.

"There’s wide variance between member states in levels of scrutiny and requirements of Competent Authority (CA) enforcement agencies," said Ms Griffin. "That risks distorting trade routes and accentuating unfair competition due to uneven policing and administrative and financial burdens of compliance."

The disparity created particular confusion for smaller suppliers, but also problems for "multinationals trying to centralize a uniform EUTR approach across member states"

"It would also help suppliers and operators, and make the EUTR more effective, if the EC devised a way not to have 28 different due diligence systems across 28 EU states," said Mr Hildeman.

There are calls too for the EUTR to be dovetailed more closely with sustainability certification.

"The EU’s stated aim is to support sustainable forest management, but with business obliged to apply the same EUTR due diligence to certified as uncertified products, interest in voluntary certification could drop," said Ms Griffin.

Mr Hildeman said certification schemes, with "systematic chain of custody", should be accepted as evidence of negligible illegality risk.

"Clearly FSC and PEFC certified products can’t have carte blanche through EUTR due diligence, but a negligible risk classification is reasonable and logical," he said. "Legality should be the base level requirement, with sustainability the natural next step – we should aim for both," said Mr Uhler.

Global approach
These international operations would also like to see closer alignment between the EUTR and its enforcement agencies, and anti-illegality systems elsewhere. Their prime targets are the US Lacey Act and Australian Illegal Logging Prohibition Regulation (AILPR), but Japan’s Goho scheme and China’s embryonic legality system were also mentioned.

"If we harmonise legality definitions internationally, it could give all schemes momentum and create a ripple effect into other markets," said Mr Hildeman. "It would also further benefit the battle against organised crime, which operates in the illegal trade globally."

The Value of Flegt Vpas
None of the companies are currently major tropical timber consumers, largely they say because of their product profiles and customers ‘ tastes.

But all urged even greater backing for tropical suppliers in meeting EUTR requirements.

"The tropics are experiencing some of the fastest deforestation, partly due to illegal logging, but mainly land conversion, so we need to support them in the marketplace to incentivise forest maintenance, " said Mr Uhler.

It’s because of its particular focus on tropical areas that all three companies also want to see the EUTR-associated FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) initiative for supplier countries given added impetus.

Under the programme, VPA signatory states undertake forest governance reform and establish legality assurance systems. In return, they can supply FLEGT-licensed timber, which is exempt from further due diligence risk assessment under the EUTR.

As no FLEGT-licensed timber has yet been shipped, after several years of the VPA scheme’s existence, Ms Griffin acknowledged it had not been front of mind at B&Q.

"That’s not a criticism, we accept it’s a demanding initiative working in hugely challenging environments, and it has to be 100% water tight," she said.

At the same time, B&Q would now like to see information flow on VPA progress stepped up.

Mr Hildeman agreed. "It is going to be a challenge to create market incentive for FLEGT-licensed timber, as it will depend on achieving a critical mass," he said. "It can’t be a market niche. Once those first countries start supplying licensed material, we need others following quickly behind."

"If we can communicate that FLEGT motivates suppliers to maintain their forest and supports livelihoods that pass down the generations, that’s a really powerful message," said Mr Uhler.

So his final statement, dispelling any last doubts that the timber sector is a reluctant partner in the project, is that, the sooner outstanding issues in the EUTR are resolved and FLEGT-licensing up and running, the better.

"I don’t underestimate the challenges, but my message would be let’s get on with it!"