ALEXANDRIA, VA – The Tropical Forest Foundation is making its Legal Verified program available to wood suppliers and importers seeking to document that  their products comply with new Lacey Act requirements.

Congress amended the Lacey Act last year to halt the importation of wood products made from illegally harvested forests. Most wood products imported to the United States are now required to be accompanied by a certificate of legal origin from the source country.

The TFF Legal Verified Chain of Custody (CoC) program is designed to prove that manufacturers have performed due diligence and buyers can be assured that their products are legally sourced.  TFF’s Legal Verified CoC mark is granted when a company meets entry-level requirements including a third-party verification of legality and CoC systems from an internationally recognized auditor. In addition, an action plan to implement reduced-impact logging as a means to reduce unnecessary deforestation and achieve long-term sustainability is required.

“The system has been tested extensively in Indonesia and proven to be very workable for forest industries there,” said Keister Evans, president of TFF.

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