SFI Labels and Claims

The SFI program has developed two different lines of product labels to help consumers identify exactly what they are buying: SFI certified forest content labels and SFI certified fiber sourcing labels.

• SFI “certified content” labels show that some or all of the product’s fiber content comes from forests that are certified to the SFI, Canadian Standards Association (CSA), and/or the American Tree Farm System forest management standards. To use this label there must also be a chain-of-custody certification.
• The SFI fiber sourcing label does not make claims about certified forest content. It does show that the manufacturer’s procurement process is third-party certified to objectives 8-20 in the SFI 2010-2014 Standard, and/or certified to SFI Requirements: Section 4 - Rules for Use of SFI On-Product Labels. For additional background on SFI fiber sourcing requirements click here.

A note on label usage: Organizations that want to use SFI program labels must contact the SFI Office of Label Use and Licensing, which must approve the use of all SFI labels and claims.

A. SFI Labels and Claims for Certified Forest Content

The SFI program has certified content labels that show that some or all of the product’s fiber content comes from forests that are certified to the SFI 2010-2014 Standard, CSA CAN/CSA Z809 Standard, or the American Tree Farm System Standard. Chain-of-custody certification to SFI Requirements: Section 3 - SFI Chain-of-Custody Standard, is required before the labels can be used.

1. CERTIFIED CONTENT LABEL FOR VOLUME CREDIT OR AVERAGE PERCENTAGE CALCULATIONS - Any company that is certified under the SFI chain-of-custody standard, which is an accounting system process that tracks wood fiber through the different stages of production, and is using either the volume credit or average percentage method can use the SFI certified content label as shown below. The company must communicate the actual percentage of certified content to its customer when using the average percentage method. This can be done through the label wrap, invoices, bill of lading, shipping documents, letters or other acceptable forms of communication. If a company is using a multi-site certification, it may take an average of the entire production batch.

 

2. CERTIFIED CONTENT LABEL FOR AVERAGE PERCENTAGE CALCULATIONS - Any company that is certified under Section 3 - SFI Chain-of-Custody Standard, and is using the average percentage method can use the SFI combination label as shown below.

 

RECYLED CONTENT CLAIMS - Either of the certified content labels above (#1 and #2) can include a Mobius loop stating the percentage of recycled content in the product. An example is provided below.

 

B. SFI Labels and Claims for Certified Fiber Sourcing

A certified fiber sourcing label shows that the manufacturer’s procurement process is third-party certified to Objectives 8-20 in the SFI 2010-2014 Standard and/or is certified to Section 4 – Rules for Use of SFI On-Product Labels.

The fiber sourcing label does not make claims about certified content, but it does show that the non-certified forest fiber is from a responsible source. In North America, program participants must have an auditable procurement process showing that, among other things, they encourage landowners to reforest areas that have been harvested, use best management practices to protect water quality and identify and protect important habitat elements for wildlife. When sourcing fiber from outside of North America, program participants must show they support the principles of sustainable forestry, including efforts to thwart illegal logging and promote conservation of biological diversity. More information is posted under SFI Fiber Sourcing Requirements.

3. FIBER SOURCING/PROCUREMENT LABEL - Any company that is certified under the fiber sourcing requirements of the SFI 2010-2014 Standard or Section 4- Rules for Use of SFI On-Product Labels can use the fiber sourcing label as shown below.

 

Other Items on the SFI Label – Below is a list of other items that are either mandatory or optional on the SFI label

1. The SFI website is always mandatory.
2. Either the words “Sustainable Forestry Initiative” or “SFI” are mandatory
3. The claim (i.e. “Certified Fiber Sourcing,” “Promoting Sustainable Forest Management” or the x% taglines) is mandatory.
4. When using the chain-of-custody labels, the additional tagline “Chain of Custody” is mandatory.
5. When the job is not 100 percent certified, the product must clearly communicate what portion of the job the label applies to (i.e this label only applies to the cover stock).
6. When selling the product as SFI chain-of-custody certified, the SFI chain-of-custody number must be communicated to the customer at the time of sale. Communication methods include, but are not limited to, label wrap, invoices, bill of lading, shipping documents, or letters.
7. When using the average percent method, the company must disclose the actual percent from a certified forest to their customer at the time of sale.