Holzindustrie Schweighofer: Timber imports from Ukraine conform to all laws and regulations
- Company acting in accordance with the European Timber Regulation (EUTR) – all 10 EUTR checks with positive results for the company
- Going beyond the law: Strict company guidelines for the entire value chain
- Security architecture subject to continuous improvement
- Report by NGO “Earthsight” prompts further examination of concrete points of criticism—access to all relevant documents offered
In reaction to a recent report by the non-governmental organisation “Earthsight”, Holzindustrie Schweighofer wishes to transparently present the framework conditions, principles and circles of responsibility of its engagement in Ukraine: During the years 2012 to 2016, the focus of the company’s activities lay on the import of coniferous saw logs for its Romanian processing plants. In total, around 3.5 million m³ of coniferous saw logs were imported to Romania since 2012 in compliance with all applicable laws. With the coming into effect of the Ukrainian export moratorium on spruce and fir saw log exports, Schweighofer ceased its corresponding activities in November 2015. When the moratorium on exports of pine saw logs from Ukraine came into effect in December 2016, Schweighofer also ceased to import these products. Currently, Holzindustrie Schweighofer purchases only coniferous sawn timber from 16 suppliers in Ukraine.
Strict Due Diligence, Dialogue and Continuous Improvement
It is Schweighofer’s fundamental principle to adhere to all applicable rules and regulations in all its engagements. The company applies a strict control system designed to comply with the requirements of the EUTR (European Timber Regulation) to all its timber purchases. Among other aspects, the EUTR regulates the due diligence to be applied by market participants when they place timber and timber products into circulation on the European Single Market for the first time. They are obligated to prove that the timber originates from legal felling.
10 EUTR controls with positive results for the company
Between 2015 and 2018, Holzindustrie Schweighofer was subjected to 10 EUTR (European Timber Regulations) controls, all of which confirmed compliance with all legal due diligence obligations.
Meticulous Monitoring
50 Holzindustrie Schweighofer employees (including internal auditors, supply chain experts and purchasers) are involved in examining the sources of all purchased timber. Crucial elements of these examinations are: On-site visits to suppliers and the harvesting locations in the forests, intensive checking of the sustainability certifications and company profiles of the suppliers, and verification of the competent responsibility of the forestry administrations. In this way, the entire spectrum of the supply chain is checked prior to any timber purchases being made. After purchase and during delivery, quality, quantity and the respective delivery documentation are closely monitored.
Dialogue with NGOs
In addition, Holzindustrie Schweighofer is committed to maintaining a transparent dialogue with the public. Besides continuous internal revision, the company views this as the best way to determine further possibilities of optimising its security architecture. Criticism from whichever source is an important motivator for continuous improvement within the company, and this applies in particular to countries with challenging social, political and economic environments. One of the organisations with which Holzindustrie Schweighofer maintains a dialogue against this background is the NGO Earthsight. The company therefore offers Earthsight access to all relevant documents in connection with its economic activities in Ukraine.
Clearly Defined Responsibilities
How does Holzindustrie Schweighofer view its responsibility in challenging countries like Ukraine in principle? The following areas of responsibility can be discerned:
- Compliance with the laws of the respective country along with
- all applicable international laws.
- The ethical aspiration to establish efficient and transparent control systems going beyond the scope of these laws to monitor and protect the entire supply chain.
- The ambition to continuously improve our security architecture in constant dialogue with the public.
- Not to do any business with convicted offenders in the areas of corruption and illegal felling.
If specific problems arise in certain countries (such as Ukraine) that fall within the responsibility of the national authorities and must therefore be addressed by those authorities, and that are not or cannot be recognizable even to a circumspect company like Holzindustrie Schweighofer, then the company cannot assume any responsibility for such problems. Private corporations cannot, should not and must not take over the sovereign functions and duties of countries (like those of the federal prosecution, jurisdiction or executive authorities). To be made responsible for criminal acts allegedly perpetrated in a country when one may in fact be the victim of those criminal acts must be rejected emphatically.
Special Audits
It is a guiding principle of our company to cooperate with state authorities in their investigations. It is likewise an important principle of our purchasing policy to terminate contracts with suppliers in the event of legally binding convictions and to discontinue all cooperation until further notice.
We take up all points of criticism by the NGOs and analyse them to gain further insights. In this context, we have taken the issues brought up by Earthsight as an occasion to subject all our current suppliers to an additional technical and legal audit.
