Over 2 million hectares of forest area in Croatia is managed according to the FSC Principles
It is exactly 20 years ago that the state company Hrvatske šume obtained its FSC certificate which included over 2 million hectares of state-owned forest area. They were the first forest management company in the Adria-Balkan Region to do so, and thus pioneered the forest certification which was later successfully adopted in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia and Serbia. Today there is over 5 million hectares of forests in this Region which are managed according to the FSC Principles and Criteria. Other than in this Region, the global forest area managed according to the FSC Principles and Criteria also grew from 30 million hectares (in 2002, when Hrvatske šume obtained their FSC certificate) to over 215 million hectares today.
Croatia has the highest share of FSC certified forests in the world
The celebration of 20 years of FSC certification took place on the 13th of October at the booth of Hrvatske šume on the Ambienta fair. Many stakeholders from the wood sector, Ministry of Agriculture, the city of Zagreb and FSC joined to congratulate Hrvatske šume on their achievement. Diego Florian, a director of FSC Italy said: "I can say with pleasure that we found the excellent condition of the managed forests and were delighted with the dedication with which they [Hrvatske šume] manage all the areas we visited. It is important to point out that Croatian forests are the first in the world in terms of the percentage of certified forests, with as much as 74 percent of the forest area being FSC certified. We are also pleased by the fact that in the past 20 years, since the company Hrvatske šume first obtained the certificate, there has not been a single major omission that would jeopardise further certification. I congratulate Hrvatske šume on this exceptional success and look forward to further successful management of Croatian forest resources according to the FSC standards".
On the photo: Diego Florian
The forest certification directly supports the Croatian wood industry
Hrvatske šume stated: "In line with the mission of our company, which is to ensure sustainable, integral management of state forests in an ecologically sensitive, economically efficient and socially responsible manner towards society as a whole, and the company's employees, we are extremely pleased with the fact that the FSC certificate comes as a confirmation of the commitment and work of over 8 thousand of the company's employees. The fact that Hrvatske šume can promote and sell all their forest based products as FSC certified is of great significance, considering that most of the raw material used by the Croatian wood industry comes from the areas managed by Hrvatske šume.
"The findings and opinion of independent auditors confirm what we have known for a long time: that state forests are managed according to strict ecological, social and economic standards, i.e. that Hrvatske šume d.o.o. manages state forests according to the principle of sustainable development, adhering to the Law on Forests, the Law on nature protection and other valid acts, all with the aim of increasing the value of forests for future generations. In doing so, it is necessary to satisfy the wishes and needs of all interested parties - from the state as the owner of the forests, through customers, suppliers and own employees to local self-government units and the general public", further explained Mr. Igor Fazekaš, a Borad member of Hrvatske šume.
On the photo: Igor Fazekaš
Media coverage
The celebration event was well covered by the local and national press, while the organisation of the Ambienta fair additionally congratulated the company Hrvatske šume on their 2 decades long achievement with FSC forest management certification live on the Croatian national television. Find some press clipping below.