Title

Revision of FSC Forest Management Groups Standard

Code

FSC-STD-30-005 V2-1

Type

Standard

Start date

August 2018

End date

August 2024

Purpose

To revise the Group Certification Standard V1-0 to:

  • Update the standard content to align it with FSC normative documents and Global Strategic Plan;
  • Address concerns expressed by stakeholders, certificate holders and certification bodies;
  • Consider the inclusion of innovative mechanisms to optimize Group Certification;
  • Better include some stakeholder groups like small forest owners and communities in the standard.

To revise the Group Certification Standard V2-0 to:

  • Updated definitions, including “communities” and “community members” in line with the SLIMF & Community Forest Eligibility Criteria,
  • Enhanced clarity and consistency with the CFM Standard and the Continuous Improvement Procedure
  • Improved guidance on group management systems and monitoring practices
Strategic alignment

V1-0: At the 2017 General Assembly in Vancouver, Canada, the membership approved Motion 46 that recommended the New Approaches project to conduct several pilot tests to assess the feasibility of different approaches that can improve uptake and maintenance of certification by small forest owners and communities.

Technical Working Group
  • Marie-Christine Fléchard (Soil Association)
  • Gabriel Bolton (NEPCon)
  • Victoria Rizo (2Tree Consultoria)
  • Matti Maajärvi (UPM-Kymmene Corporation)
  • Conceição Silva dos Santos ( UNAC – Mediterranean Forest Union)
  • Xiao Jianmin (Research Institute of Forestry Policy and Information, Chinese Academy of Forestry)
  • Yadira Molina (Fundacion MaderaVerde)

Timeline

June 2025
Focused consultation on the applicability of V2-1

Following over four years of implementation, FSC launched a focused consultation to gather stakeholder feedback on the practical application of FSC-STD-30-005 V2-1. The consultation explores how well the new provisions are working, whether they are useful and clear, and what improvements may be needed.


Stakeholders are invited to participate in English, Spanish, or French via the FSC Consultation Platform by 23 June 2025.


Access the consultation here

May 2025
Launch of the FM Groups Applicability Study

FSC initiated a global study to assess the uptake and application of V2-1 of the Forest Management Groups Standard. The study aims to:

  • Analyze adoption trends and impact of the revised standard
  • Compare with the SAP pilot testing model
  • Assess group membership duration and contractor participation based on FSC data
     
23 August 2024
Publication of FSC-STD-30-005 V2-1

The alignment process for the Forest Management Groups Standard was successfully completed. The revised standard, FSC-STD-30-005 V2-1, was officially published and is now available in the FSC Document Centre, effective from 1 January 2025.


Key updates include:

  • Updated definitions, including “communities” and “community members” in line with the SLIMF & Community Forest Eligibility Criteria
  • Enhanced clarity and consistency with the CFM Standard and the Continuous Improvement Procedure
  • Improved guidance on group management systems and monitoring practices
     
July 2024
Aligned requirements approved

The final alignment requirements for the Forest Management Groups Standard were approved by the FSC Director of Policy Operations.

22 May – 4 June 2024
Focused consultation launched

A focused consultation was opened on the FSC Consultation Platform to gather stakeholder input on the proposed aligned changes to FSC-STD-30-005 V2-0.


Access the consultation here

January 2024
Alignment process for FSC-STD-30-005 V2-0 begins

The alignment of the Forest Management Groups Standard started to ensure consistency with newly published FSC normative documents: the SLIMF & Community Forest Eligibility Criteria (FSC-STD-01-003 V2-0), the Controlled Forest Management (CFM) Standard (FSC-STD-30-010 V3-0), and the Continuous Improvement Procedure (FSC-PRO-30-011 V1-0).

March 2021

Spanish webinar is rescheduled for 19 March 2021, 15:30-17:00 CET.

View the recording of the English webinar here

View the recording of the Spanish webinar here.

February 2021

Learn more about the recent revision to the Forest Management Group Standard (FSC-STD-30-005 V2-0) at our upcoming interactive webinars during the first week of March.  

The revised standard will become effective on the 16th of March and we want to empower our stakeholders to be sure you have all required information about the changes and effects of the newly revised standard.  

The webinars will all present the same content with a dedicated Q&A session for participants. Please register for any of the webinars by clicking on their links below: 

December 2020

After approval by the FSC International Board of Directors, the Forest Management Groups Standard V2-0 is published to FSC's document centre and can be downloaded here

September 2020
Approval process started
16 June 2020
First consultation report published
March 2020

FSC publishes factsheet on Group Standard revision. Read it here.

11 February 2020
Consultative Forum open
08 November 2019 – 10 January 2020
Draft 1 public consultation
25-28 June 2019
Second Technical Working Group in-person-meeting
19-22 February 2019
First Technical Working Group in-person meeting.
04 December 2018
Members of the Technical Working Group are announced.
17 September - 16 October 2018
Open call for stakeholders to join Technical Working Group to revise FSC Group Certification Standard.
07 August 2018
Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Technical Working Group approved by the Performance and Standards Unit.
FSC-STD-30-005_MainChanges_V1-1_vs._V2-0
PDF, Size: 212.63KB
2020-04_New Aproaches_Factsheet_Group Standard Revision.pdf
PDF, Size: 580.34KB
FSC-STD-30-005 V2-1 EN Forest Management Groups.pdf
PDF, Size: 921.23KB
FM Groups Factsheet EN.pdf
PDF, Size: 777.68KB