Certification – definitions

Certification schemes for FERCs set a range of social and environmental standards with which production of these commodities should comply. These standards usually comprise a set of principles and criteria (with the principles setting out the broad elements of the standard and the criteria defining what is required for each element), together with verifiable indicators of compliance with the criteria. An area, product, farm, manufacturer or processor (eg mill) is certified by a particular certification scheme when it is assessed as meeting the standards set by that scheme. Whereas certification relates to a particular management area or processing facility, membership is what allows an organisation to participate in governance of the scheme. In some schemes (eg the FSC), a company can be a certificate holder but does not need to be a member.1 For other schemes, like the RSPO, membership is a prerequisite for certification.2 Participation in almost all certification schemes is voluntary, although in some cases the schemes serve to enable companies to comply with legal requirements – for example, compliance with the European Union’s Renewable Energy Directive (EU RED) sustainability criteria is ensured by certification schemes such as

1 See FSC, Home [Website], and FSC, Members [Website]. 2 RSPO, RSPO certification [Website] the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) and REDCert.3 Certification is often used by companies that produce or trade FERCs – or manufacture or sell products containing them – to reassure customers that they or their suppliers have taken steps to minimise the negative environmental and/or social impacts linked to the production of the commodities concerned, and that their products can therefore be considered ‘sustainable’.4 Yet no certification scheme can make a claim that its certified products are truly sustainable, as what is actually sustainable in relation to forests, land and agriculture is not known.5 Certification labelling is a ‘promise’ or claim that a product meets the criteria set out by a certification scheme, and is mostly done at the consumer goods manufacturers’ end.6 Typically incorporated into a product’s packaging, labelling

3 European Commission, Voluntary schemes [Website] 4 For example, Unilever defines ‘sustainable sourcing’ of palm oil as purchasing only from certified sustainable sources. See Unilever (2020) p.3. 5 ISO 14021 on self-declared environmental claims says

‘The concepts involved in sustainability are highly complex and still under study. At this time there are no definitive methods for measuring sustainability or confirming its accomplishment. Therefore, no claim of achieving sustainability can be made.’ See ISO (2016) Clause 5.5, p.5. 6 Liu, P. (2010)

© Dave Taylor / Greenpeace 2 August 2016 - Canada Ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) in Canadian boreal forest.

in theory provides the purchaser/consumer with an indication of the product’s sustainability.7 An important aspect of certification is product or material traceability, usually implemented via a chain of custody (CoC) system and standards. Traceability is defined as the ability to follow a product or its components through stages of the supply chain (eg, production, processing, manufacturing and distribution); this is required if guarantees are to be made about the certification status of a product. Companies or consultancies serving as certification bodies (CBs) undertake the task of ensuring, by means of third-party audits, that the certified organisations (producers, processors, downstream companies) comply with the required social and environmental criteria. Each CB has an approved list of auditors – typically consultants or employees of the CB – who can perform the audits. The certified organisations themselves are usually responsible for commissioning these third-party audits, and bear the costs.8 Most certification schemes have accreditation requirements for CBs based on International Organization for Standardization (ISO) requirements.9 They require CBs to be

7 Retail Forum for Sustainability (2011) 8 See eg Carlson, K. M., et al. (2017), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2018) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Forest certification [Website]. 9 ISO (2012) accredited by a recognised accreditation body, such as Assurance Services International (ASI) for the FSC and RSPO.10 In simple terms, the role of accreditation bodies such as ASI is to ensure that CBs are following the rules set by the certification schemes. Additional guidance on sustainability standards is provided by bodies such as the ISEAL Alliance.11 Verification is a simpler approach that does not necessarily form part of a certification scheme; it can be defined as the ‘assessment and validation of compliance, performance, and/or actions relative to a stated commitment, standard, or target’.12 An example would be ‘second-party’ independent verification of the extent to which a company is complying with its No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) policy.13 As part of a certification scheme audit, the process of assessing whether organisations are complying with the required social and environmental criteria may also be referred to as ‘conformity assessment’ or ‘verification’.14

10 ASI, Scheme owners we work with [Website] 11 ISEAL Alliance, Who we are [Website] 12 Accountability Framework Initiative, Definitions –Monitoring, verification, reporting, and claims [Website] 13 Accountability Framework Initiative, Core principles – 11. Monitoring and verification [Website], Wilmar International (2018) 14 FSC (2014) p.3