The Wonderful World of Forest Certification
It wasn’t until 2000 that Domtar became the first U.S. paper manufacturer to receive FSC forest management certification for its lands in upstate New York. This was followed by Mohawk Fine Papers, which in 2002 received chain-of-custody certification for the manufacture of FSC-certified paper.
That same year, Ris Paper became the first merchant with chain-of-custody certification. Then Finch Paper received forest management certification for its forestland and chain-of-custody certification for its manufacturing facilities, thus becoming the first company to wholly manufacture paper in the U.S. from the forest to the final product.
Vic Nathan Barkin has more than 35 years of experience in the printing, paper and wood products industries and currently owns a consulting practice specializing in business development, workflow, and technology implementation, focusing on “Green Procurement and Production” practices. Vic is a QMS Lead Auditor certified to ISO 9001:2008 standards, is a consultant for the Rainforest Alliance as an FSC Chain of Custody and Controlled Wood senior auditor, is an FSC, SFI and PEFC lead auditor for PricewaterhouseCoopers and SGS North America, and has engaged in more than 700 site assessments and audits.
