The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) (1) schemes is celebrating another significant achievement with the news that all printed copies of The Economist will now carry the PEFC logo as an assurance of responsible paper procurement.
 
The addition of The Economist to the wide range of publications bearing the PEFC logo, demonstrates clearly how far recognition of the PEFC brand has grown over the past 12 months, particularly in the UK.
 
Commenting on the certification, The Economist's international production director Sharon Simpson said, "The Economist Group, which owns The Economist, takes environmental issues seriously. We want to demonstrate to our readers that The Economist is committed to sourcing its paper from sustainably managed sources and the PEFC certification scheme is an excellent way for us to do this."
 
Edited in London since 1843, The Economist is a weekly international news and business publication, offering clear reporting, commentary and analysis on world current affairs, business, finance, science and technology, culture, society, media and the arts. The Economist has a worldwide print circulation of more than 1.4 million.
 
In November this year PEFC will be celebrating its 10th Birthday in Paris. Since its inception in 1999 as the Pan European Forest Certification scheme, membership has grown from the original eleven founding European countries to become a truly global scheme encompassing thirty four countries on six continents; with the Netherlands and Ireland joining the PEFC family in 2008, followed most recently by Malaysia and Gabon.
 
As a result, PEFC now endorses twenty eight national certification schemes across the globe. The 220 million certified hectares managed by these member schemes are now delivering millions of tonnes of certified material into the global marketplace to meet the ever increasing demand for certified wood products. At present, the global tally of chain of custody certificates is fast approaching 5,000 and over 30,000 logo licences have so far been issued.