When Joonya nappies were in development, we decided it was important to use FSC® certified wood fluff in our nappy core. The more we learned about what this certification represented, the more we realised this was the future for modern, informed consumers who care about the planet.
FSC stands for ‘Forest Stewardship Council’ and is a non-profit whose mission is to take care of our forests and those who rely on them – by protecting plant and animal species, indigenous peoples rights, forest workers’ safety, and much more. The certification scheme began in 1994, and ensures forests around the world are responsibly managed. Currently over 200 million hectares of forest are FSC certified, in over 80 countries worldwide. They aim to have a 20% share of global forest-based trade by 2020.
If you peer closely at packaging on supermarket shelves (like we do!), you’ll notice more and more brands are using FSC certified packaging in an effort to support this organisation. There are several other forest certification schemes with similar missions, but the FSC certification is known for being the most stringent and therefore reliable. Having said that, there are many brands who incorrectly claim to be FSC certified and it is worth looking closely to see if there is a license number on the FSC logo. That license number can be cross checked on the public certificate search tool provided by FSC. If you do not see this license number then you should be cautious as there are brands out there who falsely claim to be certified.
Conscious consumption is the theme of the twenty-first century, especially in first world countries who can afford to have choices. We believe it is our responsibility as a brand to do everything we can to offer consumers the choice to spend an extra couple of cents per nappy to have FSC certified wood fluff in the core. The extra couple of cents covers the cost of implementing the certification across the supply chain. Strict annual audits are performed to ensure compliance at every link from the time the tree is felled to the time it reaches the consumer.
We hope our customers can see the value in supporting FSC products, and feel free to write to us with any questions you may have!