Kosten und Nutzen der Waldzertifizierung für die Schweizer Waldeigentümer | Costs and benefits of forest certification for Swiss forest owners

Sustainability certification has been carried out in Switzerland for forestry and wood processing chains according to the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes (PEFC) for over ten years. However forest owners are unsure whether the resulting benefits justify the costs involved in forest certification. The Forestry Department of the Swiss College of Agriculture (SHL) in Zollikofen has been commissioned by various associations and organisations to analyse the situation. The aim of the study was to take stock of the situation from the point of view of forest owners, and undertake forward-looking strategic considerations with respect to forest certification. Today more than a third of Swiss forests are PEFC/FSC-doubly-certified. In comparison to countries outside of Switzerland, the penetration of forest certification with FSC is considerably greater than in neighbouring countries, in which the PEFC label dominates. There is cur...