BRAZIL – On July 1, Duratex completed 25 years of obtaining the FSC certificate for responsible forest management, being the first company in the planted forest sector in the world to reach this milestone.

Obtaining the seal and the commitment to responsible management of forest resources result in positive impacts to date, both for the company and for the environment and the population living around Duratex’s forests.

The company’s search for certification, which recognized its management practices, came amid an increase in global demand for more balanced and responsible production processes. The increase in global attention to the environment gained momentum with Eco-92, having been one of the drivers for the founding of FSC in 1994. With the paradigm shift in the industry, especially the wood production chain, Duratex volunteered to meet the new demands of the market and society.

The FSC (Forest Stewardship Council®) is responsible for certifications that involve the entire extraction and transformation chain of timber and non-timber forest products. To obtain FSC certification, all stages of the production chain must meet the requirements of the organization, which focuses on ensuring environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable practices.

The history of practices aligned with the requirements of the FSC allowed the rapid obtaining of certification by Duratex in July 1995, one year after the founding of the FSC. Duratex, in addition to being a pioneer in South America, is the Latin American company that has had the certificate for the longest time, without any interruption.

“When Duratex received the group of FSC auditors in January 1995, there was a notable positive surprise from visitors, who found our forests exceeding several stipulated evaluation criteria. Since then, our employees have been striving more and more to continue with the standard of excellence that characterizes our forests”, commented José Ricardo Ferraz, Director of Operations at Duratex. The differences observed were the result of practices already adopted, but which were not required by law. “In Agudos, for example, Duratex has had a tradition since the 1970s to develop research on the biodiversity found in our forests. Nowadays we are partners with universities, making our forestry units available to assist in the production of knowledge ”, concluded Ferraz.