Austria, Canada, UK and Uruguay achieve PEFC re-endorsement

The Austrian, Canadian, UK and Uruguayan national forest certification systems have successfully achieved PEFC re-endorsement, confirming they continue to meet our globally recognized Sustainability Benchmarks.

Combined, these four systems account for over 40 million hectares of sustainably managed forest. For both Austria and the UK, this is the fourth time these systems have achieved PEFC endorsement; it is the third time for Canada and the second for Uruguay.

The endorsement process
To achieve endorsement, a national system goes through a rigorous assessment to confirm it was developed in line with our requirements. Through this process, we can ensure that the country’s national standards meet our globally accepted PEFC Sustainability Benchmarks.

An independent PEFC Registered Assessor conducts the assessment, which evaluates the compliance of the national system. The assessor bases the assessment on comments received from a 60-day global public consultation, field trips and other available information.

After a national system has successfully passed the assessment, the PEFC General Assembly votes on its endorsement.

Maintaining endorsement
Once endorsed, a national system needs to meet specific endorsement milestones to maintain the validity of the endorsement.

The first milestone is the review date, five years after the national approval of the sustainable forest management standard. To maintain its endorsement, the national member must start the periodic review of the national system before this date.

Review dates for these national systems: Austria: 29 May 2022, Canada: 16 September 2021, UK: 20 April 2021, Uruguay: 30 September 2019.
https://pefc.org/news-a-media/general-sfm-news/2536-austria-canada-uk-and-uruguay-achieve-pefc-re-endorsement