Certified and sustainable wood key to Vietnamese timber manufacturing sector’s credibility
Vietnam ranks second in Asia and fifth in the world for the value of its timber product exports, which the Vietnamese Government aims to increase to US$20 billion by 2025. The country imports around 2.5 million cubic meters of timber from more than one hundred countries each year.
“Responsible sourcing is important for the credibility of the Vietnamese timber manufacturing sector and critical to tackling environmentally harmful, unsustainable logging practices worldwide. It also just makes good business sense,” says Mr. Vince Tran, Country Director of Canadian Wood Vietnam.
For example, the global eco-friendly furniture market size was valued at US$43.26 billion and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 9% from 2022 to 2030.
That’s the thinking behind the nation’s Timber Legality Assurance System, an enforcement framework designed to clamp down on any illegal domestic or imported sources of wood.
The system requires all operators in Vietnam to exercise Due Diligence (DD) on their products to guarantee that the timber is harvested, processed and traded legally. The good news is sustainably-harvested legally-sourced Canadian softwoods can help Vietnamese wood fabricators meet Vietnam’s Timber Legality Assurance System requiring manufacturers to source wood products from legally logged forests.
Canadian softwoods come from legal, sustainably managed forests
In response to this decree, Canada has been identified as a trusted international supplier and recognized as a legal and sustainable provider of forest products.
“Canada is well-respected for world-class sustainable forest management practices. Any wood imported from Canada comes with an assurance that it is legally sourced and complies with strict forest legislation,” says Mr. Vince Tran.
Canada’s most westerly province British Columbia (B.C.) is the nation’s largest source of sustainably harvested wood.
B.C. practices sustainable forestry, with some of the most comprehensive practices in the world, according to a comparative study by the University of British Columbia. Roughly 95% of BC forests are publicly owned and governed by stringent laws and environmental regulations.
B.C. has roughly the same amount of forested area as it did before European settlement, making it one of the few regions in the world with virtually no significant deforestation. It plants 200 million seedlings each year as part of its commitment to reforestation. Only three percent of BC’s land has been permanently converted to other uses such as farming, ranching and urban development. When compared to seven other forest jurisdictions around the world, BC has one of the highest percentages of total land covered with forests, second only to Japan.
Understanding forest certifications applicable to Canadian wood imports
“B.C.’s comprehensive forest management laws and regulations are further enhanced by the industry’s widespread participation in rigorous forest certification programs. Vietnamese manufacturers can take advantage of the eco-friendly reputation of Canadian wood products and certifications—something an increasing number of buyers are looking for,” says Mr. Vince Tran.
With more than 41 million hectares of certified forests in B.C., the province has some of the highest rates of forest certification in the world. In fact, Canada accounts for almost 35% of all certified forests globally—the largest of any country worldwide.
Forest certification is a voluntary process conducted by an independent third party that assesses the sustainability and quality of a company’s forest management against a set of defined standards. Certification and related product labelling inform customers and the public about wood products that come from certified forests. Certification of forest management examines whether an operation meets a specified set of standards, while certification of the chain of custody (sometimes called CoC certification) verifies that certified material is identified or kept separate from non-certified or non-controlled material throughout production, from the forest to the end-user. To label a product as certified, both forest management certification and chain-of-custody certification are required.
In Canada, there are three third-party certification systems for sustainable forest management: Canadian Standards Association’s Sustainable Forest Management Standard (CSA), Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).
Certification programs are endorsed and overseen by one of two independent non-profit organizations: Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which oversees both endorsement and certification programs. CSA and SFI are recognized by PEFC.
While there are some differences between each certification program, the three used in BC—CSA, FSC and SFI—all promote principles, criteria and objectives based on sustainable forest management, including reforestation, reasonable harvesting quotas and protection of wildlife habitat, soils, water and surrounding ecosystems.
“As we see it, it’s a real win-win. Vietnamese manufacturers can rest assured Canadian wood products are sustainable. They can also take advantage of the abundance of certified wood products Canada offers and include these reputable certification programs as an eco-friendly boost to their own marketing initiatives,” says Mr. Vince Tran.
You can learn more about the benefits of sustainably-harvested, certified Canadian wood products at: www.canadianwood.com.vn/en/resources/
