New PEFC Chain of Custody standard: deadline for transition
All PEFC Chain of Custody audits, assessments og reassessments shall be carried out according to the new CoC standard (PEFC ST 2002:2010) after the transition date of 26 November 2011.
Until this date, PEFC-certified companies can choose to continue following the old standard or switch to the new standard. "The new standard mainly imposes additional requirements without softening the existing rules", explains senior consultant at NEPCon Michael K. Jakobsen.
The new Chain of Custody standard covers several new requirements. Among the notable changes are a requirement for adherence to the ILO core conventions on workers' rights, and a new and expanded definition of controversial sources.
The same transition date and deadline applies to PEFC's revised standard for PEFC logo usage. If your company switches to the new CoC standard, you should make sure to start following the revised logo usage requirements as well.