FSC certification offers forest managers or owner is a way of ensuring that your careful and long-term forest management is recognised. Certification is voluntary. It involves an inspection of the forest management by an independent organisation to check that it passes the internationally agreed FSC principles and criteria of good forest management.

To sell material from an FSC certified forest with the FSC logo, a forest manager must also achieve FSC chain of custody certification. The FSC label shows that product comes from a well-managed forest and enables you to pass on the benefits of certification to your customers.

FSC forest management certification also includes the certification of tree plantations. Principle 10 of the FSC Principles and Criteria is dedicated to plantations. FSC is currently reviewing the implementation of the FSC Principles and Criteria in plantations.