FSC’s group certification was developed to help smaller enterprises achieve FSC certification by joining together to become certified under one certificate and as a result reducing the costs and administrative requirements of certification.
FSC’s current Standard for Chain of Custody of Multiple Sites (FSC-STD-40-003 V2.1) considers small enterprises eligible to be included in a group certificate if they have:
- No more than 15 employees (full time equivalent); OR
- No more than 25 employees (full time equivalent) and a maximum total annual turnover of US $1,000,000.
However, there are large variations in economic development between countries that FSC operates in and so FSC allows for the criteria to be revised and adapted to fit local realities.
Revising the criteria for Canadian small businesses
FSC Canada has begun to revise the current eligibility criteria for Canada in accordance with the ‘Development of National Group Chain of Custody Eligibility Criteria Procedure’ (FSC-PRO040-001 V1.1).
| Development Process | Timeline |
|---|---|
| Researching available socio-economic data to determine what is considered a ‘small business’ in Canada + draft revised eligibility criteria for Canada | September 2023 |
| Host a 30-day public consultation on the draft criteria | October 2023 |
| Conduct stakeholder feedback analysis | November 2023 |
| Provide the final draft to the FSC Canada Board of Directors for review and approval | November 2023 |
| Submit to FSC International for final approval | December 2023 |