Both the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) Council have issued updates on their positions in the world marketplace.
After conducting a survey of FSC certified companies during March and April this year, FSC has revised its global market estimate from in excess of US$3bn to in excess of US$5bn.
FSC said the survey of 250 certificate holders represented about 5% of FSC certified companies and that, over the past 10 years, 50 million ha in more than 62 countries have been certified according to its standards, while several thousand products are produced using FSC standards and carrying the FSC trademark.
Meanwhile, PEFC said more than 122 million ha of forests are certified to its standard, setting a new world record in successfully implementing sustainable forest management.
Following the endorsement of the Canadian CSA forest certification system, North America is now the fourth continent with PEFC-endorsed forests.
Certification systems from Brazil, Malaysia and the US yet to receive PEFC endorsement account for another 64 million ha worldwide.
