Photo: ©FAO

Ankara – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) organized the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Progress Workshop within the scope of the “Sustainable Land Management and Climate Friendly Agriculture” project, in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and funded by the Global Environment Fund (GEF).During the meeting all participants were informed about certification studies.

Peter Pechacek, FAO Forestry Department Manager, opened the meeting with a keynote speech which included the following remarks:

“Although we have come to the end of our certification work with the Konya Regional Directorate of Forestry, we are now starting to apply the successful outputs of our project. The certification work begun through this exceptional project, funded by GEF, will continue after its completion. We at FAO are very proud of this project, which has now entered its last year.

Certification is based on a philosophy of informing consumers, so that they can make conscious decisions about forest-based products and promoting sustainable forestry management. Forest products normally take the form of timber products, but erosion control, flood prevention and non-wood forest products have also been included in this process based on our request. Even products such as honey can be subject to certification studies. We have prepared the ground for this practice, which has not previously been implemented in Turkey, and I believe it will set an example for other regions.”

Mehmet Yıldız, Deputy Head of Management and Marketing Department of the General Directorate of Forestry, then gave a speech in which he explained the certification process. He further noted that the last stage of the project has been reached and that certified production has begun with a corresponding Forest Management Council certificate received on 11 November 2020. He emphasized that certification has become a key teaching tool to convey the importance of protecting forests in the context of the global pandemic and thanked everyone who contributed to this study.

The meeting then continued with a Certification Process Presentation made by Prof. Dr Ahmet Sıvacıoğlu.

About Forest Management Stewardship Council Certification

FSC (Forest Stewardship Certification) studies of the forests of the Karaman Directorate of Forestry, Ereğli, were carried out jointly by the Konya Regional Directorate of Forestry and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, resulting in the certification of a total of 231,273.9 hectares of forestland.

The certificate indicates that the forests of the Karaman Forestry Operation Directorate, Ereğli, are managed in accordance with the dimensions specified in the certificate and in a sustainable manner. Any raw materials bought from the management directorate will have a high added value due to their certification.