The use of public procurement policy to achieve sustainable development objectives has increased steadily over the past decade. Amongst the various "green procurement" initiatives, forestry is a sector which received much attention. However, unlike areas such as product safety or energy efficiency, the use of public procurement to enhance sustainable forest management (SFM) is extremely complex – largely because the elements of SFM are broad ranging, variable, and to some extent controversial.

Recent developments at European and national levels indicate the increasing importance of forest certification schemes in public procurement policies. At the national level, several EU Member States have already implemented or are going to implement public procurement policies aimed to support well-managed forestry, in which certification schemes may play a central role.

Against this background, this brochure analyses the linkages between public procurement and forest certification. It also contains a survey and comparison of some of the major forest certification schemes: FSC, PEFC, CSA, MTCC and SFI. This brochure is based on a study which was generously co-funded by the European Commission.

The Ecologic Brief on Public Procurement and Forest Certification can be downloaded [pdf, 124 KB, English].