Responsible purchasing

Get 'SMART' about where and how you source your wood

A corner stone of any efforts made by a business to achieve more responsible sourcing of forest products is a Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound (SMART) environmental policy

A SMART environmental policy makes reference to:

• The traceability of forest products within the supply chain
  

• The elimination of illegally logged forest products

• The elimination of forest products sourced from high conservation value forests which are not credibly certified
  

• Continuously increasing the proportion of forest products that originate from well managed, credibly certified forests

Blueprint for reform to sustainability
The Responsible Purchasing of Forest Products guide was developed by WWF's Global Forest & Trade Network (GFTN) for use by organisations wishing to develop a responsible programme for the procurement of forest products.

What the guide does
The guide lays out a generic approach for the adoption of a responsible purchasing policy and the development of an associated procurement programme.

Who is it for?
It is aimed at any medium-size or large enterprise, including primary mills, secondary processors, importers, manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers, that purchases or procures forest products.

The guide outlines the various ways in which purchasing organisations can demonstrate compliance with best practice and ultimately
with their own procurement policies. It is based on tried and tested mechanisms and on extensive experience in the development
of responsible procurement programmes.

More detailed practical advice for companies can be accessed from the Global Forest and Trade Network (GFTN) publications page.

Get into the good wood business
More information can also be found in the Good Wood, Good Business publication from the Tropical Forest Trust (PDF 1.1Mb).

This guide explains how you can ensure you only have 'Good Wood' in your supply chain. The guide is intended for CEOs or senior managers of companies that produce and/or supply wood products to the retail sector or other end-use markets, such as the construction industry.

If you are a retailer or end user, reading this booklet will help you judge whether your suppliers are taking appropriate action to exclude illegal and other unwanted wood from your supply chain.