FSC certification for furniture is a good indication that the furniture has been independently evaluated and determined sustainable or eco-friendly, but what exactly does that mean?

What is FSC? The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an independent, non-governmental, not-for-profit organization that promotes responsible management of the world's forests. It is widely regarded as one of the most important initiatives to promote responsible forest management worldwide. It places a special emphasis on rainforest conservation.

Launched by environmental groups in 1993 FSC manages an international standard for well-managed forests and a process for tracking and certifying wood furniture, flooring and other products derived from those forests. FSC addresses numerous aspects of sustainable forestry, including ecological issues, old-growth forests, plantations, restoration, biodiversity, native habitat, indigenous people's rights, and sound management for timber production.

The FSC label provides certification of the chain of links between the forest where a product originates and the consumer. For example with wood furniture, each of the following businesses involved in transforming a tree into a piece of furniture would have to be FSC certified in order for that furniture piece to be FSC certified:

• Certified forest owner- Must employ a professional forester and develop a forest management plan which meets stringent ecological and social criteria

• Certified logger and sawyer

• Certified lumber wholesaler

• Certified lumber retailer

• Certified furniture maker

• Certified furniture retailer

Benefits of FSC Certification In my opinion, FSC provides the most rigorous certification process available. It's widely considered the gold standard in sustainable forestry and has moved the world forward in many areas of rainforest conservation.

Challenges for FSC As you might expect FSC certification involves extensive rule-making and auditing that can be quite expensive to implement. It can add up to 35% to the price of the end product although the hope is that this cost will decrease as FSC certification becomes more mainstream. Still many small manufacturers are unable to assume this cost and are thus not FSC certified.

Another challenge for FSC is the rampant counterfeiting of FSC documentation accompanying raw lumber that is being illegally clear cut from the Amazon and other endangered areas of rainforest. Also FSC has been criticized by certain environmental groups as being too lenient, particularly with their policy allowing limited old growth logging.

Should I Buy Only FSC Certified Furniture? Authentic FSC certified furniture is a responsible choice for the eco-conscious homeowner. However there are many genuinely responsible, green, eco-friendly furniture makers who are not FSC certified due to the expense involved. Conversely there is a large market of fake, FSC labelled furniture that comes to us through many layers of corruption and counterfeiting.

Prior to buying be sure to ask your furniture retailer if your furniture is truly sustainable and eco-friendly, regardless of whether it carries the FSC certification.