SCS Global Services to Deliver FSC Forest Management and Chain-of-Custody Certification Services to Mexican Companies Under PRONAFOR Grant Program
Grants Administered by the Mexican National Forestry Commission (CONAFOR)
Forest managers and forest product manufacturers can now seek independent certification under the internationally renowned Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) program through Scientific Certification Systems de Mexico, a wholly owned subsidiary of SCS Global Services (SCS). SCS announced that it is now registered as a technical service provider for the PRONAFOR grant program administered by the Mexican National Forestry Commission (CONAFOR). The PRONAFOR provides funding to projects that support development of sustainable forest resources in Mexico.
“As a registered service provider under the PRONAFOR grant program, we look forward to servicing the Mexican certification market with competitive pricing, superior customer service, and technical expertise,” said Adam Wiskind, SCS de Mexico Director of Business Development for Natural Resources.
SCS was approved as a technical service provider by CONAFOR (Registration # AST150073) through a rigorous accreditation process, during which SCS’ technical knowledge and expertise were assessed. This accreditation enables SCS to offer both International Forest Management Certification and Chain-of-Custody Certification under the PRONAFOR program.
Regional CONAFOR offices fund qualified projects based on program-specific criteria. Each year, the PRONAFOR helps dozens of community cooperatives, or ejidos, and private companies obtain and maintain FSC certification. FSC forest management certification projects are eligible to receive up to 240,000 pesos from PRONAFOR, while FSC chain-of-custody projects can receive up to 75,000 pesos.
“By offering forest certification SCS is helping the Mexican Government to achieve its sustainable forestry goals, as well as the promotion of products made from responsibly sourced wood.” said Luis Antonio Aceves Montaño, Head of the Preventative Technical Audits and Forest Certification Department at CONAFOR.
“We launched our certification of well-managed forests in Mexico way back in 1991, even before FSC was founded,” said Executive Vice President Robert J. Hrubes. “Mexican ejidos and private companies have helped to set the standard for responsible forestry, and we are happy to be able to recognize these achievements under our CONAFOR registration.”
About SCS – SCS Global Services (SCS) has been providing global leadership in third-party environmental and sustainability certification, auditing, testing, and standards development for three decades. One of the first bodies accredited by the Forest Stewardship Council in 1995, SCS has since certified more than 16.2 million hectares (about 40 million acres) of responsible-managed forests and 5000 companies in the FSC supply chain worldwide. SCS is North America’s largest FSC chain-of-custody certifier. In Mexico, SCS Global Services has a long-standing reputation of helping clients achieve certification. The SCS Global Services subsidiary office in Culiacan, Sinaloa also offers auditing services to the agricultural industry. www.scsglobalservices.com – FSC license code FSC-A000521
About FSC – FSC is an international non-profit organization, formed by a group of businesses, environmentalists and community leaders after the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio failed to produce an agreement to stop deforestation. Its mission is “to promote environmentally sound, socially beneficial and economically prosperous management of the world's forests.” Over the past two decades, FSC has come to be recognized as the premier certification scheme for responsible forest practices.
About CONAFOR – La Comisión Nacional Foresta (The National Forestry Commission) was created by a presidential decree on April 4, 2001. It is a decentralized public agency whose aim is to develop, encourage and promote productive activities, conservation and restoration on public and private forest land throughout Mexico. CONAFOR participates in the formulation of plans and programs, and implements a policy of sustainable forest development.