Green stamp of approval

Summary
• The Timber Trade Federation’s Responsible Purchasing Policy (RPP) is a risk management tool which demonstrates companies have shown due diligence in avoiding importing illegal wood.
• The RPP is audited by the Soil Association.
• The TTF helps members implement the scheme.
• It has launched a new Responsible Purchaser logo.

Eyebrows were raised when the Timber Trade Federation (TTF) announced plans to make it mandatory for members to have an environmental due diligence system for minimising the risk of importing illegal wood. But I believe this is essential for the long-term future of the timber industry.

The profile and attention received by our sector on sustainability issues on the global political scene is very high, with illegal logging, climate change and deforestation dominating debate. As an industry we have a product that can tick all the environmental boxes, yet we’re jeopardising that by not taking a few simple measures to ensure that we are sourcing our timber responsibly.

As part of our commitment to help members deliver on due diligence requirements, we’ve relaunched our flagship Responsible Purchasing Policy (RPP). This is a risk management tool which helps a company assess products for evidence of legality and sustainability of supply, as well as encouraging suppliers to improve sourcing practices. It is independently audited by the Soil Association, with the underlying aim to increase the amount of independently verified legal and sustainable timber entering the UK market.

Former TTF presidents John Tong and Neil Donaldson and curent president Kevin Hayes have been the driving force behind our move towards due diligence and have already made great strides in delivering the message to members and the wider industry. In fact the sector as a whole is increasingly acknowledging that it needs to address the issue of timber from illegal sources. But now we need to make sure that we turn good intentions into good practice.

With businesses facing exceptionally tough economic conditions, there has been some criticism of our timing in making due diligence a mandatory condition of membership. But we believe it is not only vital to the long-term profitability of the industry, but also at the core of its immediate success or failure. Financial issues will clearly be at the forefront of members’ minds at the moment, but we would be failing in our duty as a trade federation if we didn’t prepare members for possible future EU legislation on due diligence, which now appears to be close at hand.

And if our industry does not work together to address this problem, then specifiers, architects and other customers will look elsewhere for their raw materials, making a difficult situation even harder. It is in the interests of companies to deal with the issue quickly and effectively – the RPP is a tool which will enable them to do this.

TTF sustainability executive Graham Bruford is responsible for ensuring that the RPP can be easily implemented by helping members through the process.

“Due diligence is nothing new, but priorities have changed,” he said. “While many companies already have procedures in place, the TTF’s tool is designed to make it easy to implement for all and provide support to members in carrying out their due diligence commitments.”

To enable companies to highlight that they have signed up to the RPP, or a similar audited scheme, the TTF has also launched a new ‘Responsible Purchaser’ logo. This can be used in marketing once companies have successfully completed the audit, so prospective customers can easily identify suppliers with an environmental due diligence system in place.

There is a clear commercial imperative for companies who have not implemented environmental due diligence to get moving now. The market for timber in the UK and across the rest of the EU is changing and those that don’t act may well be wondering in a few years time where all their customers have gone.

And, with environmental issues set increasingly to affect all aspects of our life and work, surely this is also an area where we should be leading the way. We are, after all, suppliers of the most environmentally sound construction material.