Indonesia celebrates its first PEFC-certified forests

9 June 2015 News

Two major pulp and paper companies in Indonesia — Asia Pacific Resources International, or APRIL, and Asia Pulp & Paper, or APP — have become the first in the country to achieve IFCC sustainable forest management certification.

IFCC, the Indonesian Forestry Certification Cooperation, is the national PEFC-endorsed forest certification system in Indonesia.

“I am delighted that both APP and APRIL have achieved certification based on the stringent IFCC sustainable forest management standards. This affords their products access to the PEFC label, providing a clear message to consumers worldwide that their products come from verified sustainable sources,” said Ben Gunneberg, CEO of PEFC International. “This achievement highlights the progress that local stakeholders have made in advancing sustainable forest management in the country.”

Certification was awarded to more than 600,000 hectares of forests following third-party audits to ensure their management practices are in line with the PEFC-endorsed IFCC standard requirements. The certificates are now valid for three years.

“IFCC certification demonstrates not only that forests are managed sustainably, but it also responds to international market demands for responsibly-sourced products. It will therefore contribute to better market conditions for Indonesia’s certified forest products, create jobs, and ultimately contribute to the economic growth of our country – while at the same time safeguarding our precious forest resources,” commented Dradjad H. Wibowo, Chairman of IFCC.

“Until now, most of the forest certification has occurred in the Western hemisphere, but the award of the first forest management certificates in Indonesia will help to reach the tipping point to mainstream certification in Asia,” emphasized Mr. Gunneberg.

“With a range of other countries, including India, Philippines, South Korea and Thailand engaging in standards development activities, with PEFC-endorsed systems already existing in China, Indonesia and Malaysia, and with Japan preparing to apply for PEFC-endorsement shortly, certification as a tool to demonstrate responsible practices is poised to become available to forest owners across the entire continent within a few short years,” Mr. Gunneberg concluded.