In Sweden, the forest industry is at war with the FSC sustainable management label

Will they dare? Since April, several Swedish forestry industry giants have been threatening to abandon, at least temporarily, their Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification, the organization that issues sustainable timber management labels. They accuse the organization of imposing overly strict rules, hampering their production, even as NGOs and numerous researchers are warning about the state of Sweden's overexploited forests, which absorb nearly 40% less ^CO2 than they did thirty years ago.

"This is not an easy decision to make, but it is necessary if we are to achieve our sustainability and climate goals and, at the same time, meet our commitments to our customers," wrote Jonas Martensson, head of SCA (Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget), in a letter to FSC Secretary General Subhra Bhattacharjee in early April.

With 2.7 million hectares of forest, the group is Europe's largest private forest owner. In 2024, its turnover reached 20 billion crowns (1.9 billion euros) and its profits increased by 35%.

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