Buy PEFC-certified products

You can help protect the world’s forests! All you need to do is to choose PEFC-certified products the next time you go shopping. Especially if it means that you choose forest-based materials instead of alternatives such as plastic.

This might sound strange. Choosing forest-based materials means using trees in order to make these products. How does this protect them?

We need to use our forests. If we don’t, the land will be used for other purposes, such as cattle ranches or soy plantations. Buying forest products, such as wood and paper, gives the forest value, it creates demand, and provides a financial incentive to keep a forest a forest.

Equally important, forests are renewable, and PEFC-certified forests are managed in a manner that ensures that they will be there for generations to come. Harvesting trees does not have a negative impact on the forests, as they will be replanted.

Other materials such as plastics are not renewable. In fact, 4% of the world’s entire oil production is used for the sole purpose of producing plastics.

PEFC-certified products come from PEFC-certified, sustainably managed forests. Forests that have been verified by independent experts to ensure they are managed in line with strict international standards.

When you buy a product carrying the PEFC label, you can be assured that you are not contributing to deforestation. On the contrary: you are helping stop it. 

Moreover, you are also supporting the millions of forest owners who manage their forests sustainably. Forest owners who care for their forests and depend on them for their livelihoods. 

What products can you buy?

There is a huge range of PEFC-certified products available, and as we are international, you can find them all round the world, no matter where you live! 

In some countries, you might not see our PEFC label, but one of our national members, such as SFI in North America, CFCC in China and Responsible Wood in Australia. To find out if you have a national PEFC member, just search for your country and check out their national website. 

Here are a few ideas for next time you go shopping:

PEFC-certified serving board by Dapo

Household items: Let’s start with the easy options, the things we buy on a regular basis, from toilet paper to printer paper, envelopes and tissues. Going on a picnic or having a party? Paper plates, cups, napkins and straws can all be PEFC-certified. Getting your children ready for school? Look out for PEFC-certified pencils and notebooks. 

Furniture: Beautiful wooden beds, coffee tables, wardrobes, bookcases, dining tables… and smaller items, such as photo frames, kitchen utensils and ornaments can all be PEFC-certified. Outside too, check for the PEFC label when buying your new garden table and chairs or a sun lounger.

DIY: Are you putting in a new floor, replacing your kitchen cabinets, building a new garden shed? All these are available in PEFC-certified wood. Even if you are not doing the work yourself, ask your builders to choose PEFC-certified timber. 

Fashion: You might be surprised to hear that many of the clothes we buy today are made out of fibres that come from a forest. Check the label; if it’s made from Viscose, Modal and Lyocell, it’s from a forest. The fashion industry is still a new area for us, but keep checking the labels; soon you’ll see the PEFC logo! 

Check out the first clothing collection made from PEFC-certified fabrics!

Food: It’s not just wood that comes from a forest, but also food. Mushrooms, Iberico ham, berries, honey, and even beer, you can find all these PEFC-certified. However, these items are still quite specialized and only available from certain retailers – so they might not be as easy to find as PEFC-certified toilet paper!

Get a taste of just some of the food that can come from the forest with our Spanish wild foods project.

Packaging: Don’t forget, even if the product you are buying doesn’t come from the forest, it’s packaging does! Next time your’re in the supermarket, check the boxes of your favourite cereal or tea for the PEFC label. Check out some inspiring packaging case stories.