New European Union Timber Regulation Will Affect All British Retailers

New European Union Timber Regulation coming into force from 3rd March 2013 will affect all British Retailers. It means that from this date it will be an offence to sell products that contain timber that has been harvested illegally within the EU. Companies from 3rd March 2013 will need to ensure that they know where the timber came from and be able to prove that it was harvested legally. The Timber regulation also relates in part to paper products. The new legislation applies to products that a company sells onto its customers as well as the products that it uses within its premises either in wooden furniture or printer paper. British Retail Consortium have concerns that the supporting documents that would help advise British retailers are not being released with sufficient time that would allow them to put practices and systems in place to comply with the legislation. The British Retail Consortium has a guidance document on the BRC website for all of its member retailers to access and get the advice they need. Catherine Pazderka, Head of Sustainability had this to say on the new EU rules: “The new EU timber rules amount to one of the most substantial pieces of legislation affecting the retail supply chain we’ve ever faced. British retailers have an outstanding record on using ethical and sustainable materials but it will still take companies many months to work through all the products they sell and materials they use in-house to establish they have the required documentation. ” Source: bdaily