Scientific Certification Systems (SCS), a U.S.-based environmental certification company, recently released its new LegalHarvest Standard.
“We developed the LegalHarvest standard to help forest product businesses prepare for sweeping regulations like the EU ban and the expansion of the Lacey Act. By being verified to our standard, companies can demonstrate due care in sourcing legally harvested wood products,” says Dr. Robert J. Hrubes, senior vice president of Scientific Certification Systems, a founding member of the Forest Stewardship Council.
According to SCS, “Assessments at the forest level under SCS LegalHarvest Verification are essentially identical to that of Verified Legal Origin (VLO) – both assess the forest management entity’s legal right to harvest. However, LHV goes a step further, including a more robust standard for timber product companies that are further down the supply chain from the forest of harvest. Compliance to the LegalHarvest Verification Standard will help protect your company from inadvertent violation of the US Lacey Act or the EU Due Diligence Regulation.”
