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Actualidades - Arquivo
AIMMP signs TTAP MOU
AIMMP now joins the UK, Dutch, Belgian and French as a the fifth EU project partner of TTAP, enabling its member to benefit from technical assistance of TFT, as well as being part of the project's managing body. "In 2008 we [Portugal] imported 52, 000 cubic meters of logs and 88, 200 cubic meters of sawn timber, making Portugal the fifth largest importer of tropical timber in the EU. Signing this MOU with TFT i a strategic move for our organisation to help prepare our members for their incoming EU Due Diligence Legislation" said Joao Ferreira da Costa, Director of AIMMP. This decision signals the growing importance of legality in the timber sector in Portugal and it is hoped that other Timber Trade Federations in Southern Europe will also follow suit. FSC Market and Policy Analysis - Surveys online until 22nd of March Starting on February 24th, the FSC Policy and Standards Unit has launched a market and policy analysis by means of online questionnaires for certificate holders and market experts. The purpose of this analysis is to assess potential impacts of phasing out two policy exemptions concerning chip and fibre product users by the end of 2010. The two current exemptions are:
The questionnaires aim to capture information about:
The outcome of this survey will support the FSC Board of Directors in their decision making process about the current policy exemptions and phase-out timelines. A decision on this subject is currently scheduled for mid April 2010. Certificate holders and market experts that have not received an invitation to participate in the survey can turn to Stefan Salvador (s.salvador@fsc.org) to request access to the relevant questionnaire. The survey is open until Monday, 22nd March 2010, 8:00 Central European Time (UTC+1). FSC Market and Policy Analysis - Surveys online until 22nd of March In order to clarify the rules FSC IC has made a few minor adjustments to FSC-STD-50-001 Requirements for use of the FSC trademarks by Certificate Holders. The changes are:
Please also find attached an FAQ with more detailed information on the use of the trademark registration symbol. Norma FSC de Gestão Florestal para Portugal Consulte a versão final da Norma FSC. Esta versão resultou de duas reuniões finais realizadas no passado mês de Novembro e já em Janeiro e procurou incorporar os resultados dos testes de campo, os últimos comentários dos membros do Grupo de Partes Interessadas e a crescente experiência em Certificação Florestal dos participantes nas sessões técnicas. A Norma FSC será oficialmente aprovada na próxima Assembleia Geral e traduzida para inglês, uma das línguas oficiais – o último passo para o envio da Norma para acreditação. Alterações ao calendário de reuniões Consulte as novas datas das sessões técnicas. Good news for responsible wine lovers: UK supermarkets go for FSC cork NEPCON & Rainforest Newsletter – 15 February 2010 Two leading UK supermarkets - Sainsbury's and The Co-operative Group - are coming to the rescue of threatened Mediterranean cork oak forests. These unique forests are home to species such as the Iberian lynx, Imperial Iberian eagle and the black stork. These characteristic landscapes, found mainy in Spain and Portugal (although also occurring in France, Italy, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia) depend on the traditional production of cork for their continuity and protection. Wine stoppers are one of the most important cork products. Following an announcement that it is going to use FSC-certified cork for all wines, spirits and beers sealed with natural cork closures by the end of 2010, the supermarket chain Sainsbury's is set to become the biggest user of FSC certified corks in the world. Another major UK retailer, The Co-operative Group, intends to move about a third of its own-brand wines to FSC-certified stoppers this year. The cork stoppers will be supplied by Amorim, the first company in the world to gain FSC status for its cork closures. The Cork Comeback For years, there has been a trend towards replacing cork stoppers with other stoppers, including synthetic closures and screw caps - even for more expensive wines, based on a belief that these alternatives came with fewer quality issues than cork (certain compounds that arise in cork can spoil the taste of the wine to some extent, a process known as 'corking'). This trend is threatening to put the cork oak forests in jeopardy, as they are converted to other competing land uses, such as more lucrative olive groves. Fortunately, the trend now appears about to be reversed. First of all, awareness is growing of cork's environmental and cultural advantages. Cork is a natural product, unlike its rival products - synthetic "cork-lookalike" stoppers and screw caps. Cork is produced by the natural growth of tree’s bark and the cork forests store carbon, making cork a climate-friendly choice. On the other hand, production of alternative closures requires energy and they are not biodegradable. And only cork production is connected with ancient cultural traditions and the maintenance of unique semi-natural landscapes. Cork can be harvested from the tree once every 9-15 years depending on local or national practices, without damaging the tree. Cork extraction usually does not begin until the tree has reached an age of about 15-25 years, so a typical cork oak may be harvested 10-15 times in its lifetime. Cork extraction is still largely a manual process and in remote areas still relies on animal transport for extraction from the forest. Cork versus synthetic stoppers for preserving wine quality And even the tenet about inferior quality of cork-bottled wine is being increasingly questioned. The latest issue of Amorim's newsletter relates that it’s new quality-improved cork stopper has come out on top, in several trials involving cork and plastic stoppers. The advantage of cork is perhaps also brought out by an unfortunate experience of film maker Francis Ford Coppola, director of “Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now". Coppola is also a winemaker, and recently more than 50,000 cases of Coppola wine were found to be ruined. According to several media, leaky screw caps were the basis for a law suit filed by Coppola. Referring to the Coppola wine story, famous Spanish wine connoiseur Juan Muñoz recently asked whether the quality issues of screw caps aren't more serious than those related with cork. "If a monk chooses to seal his bottles with this noble product and the system persists up to the present day, it is because it works, and works well", he wrote in the magazine Cartavariada. Mr. Munõz should know his subject: He is Vice President of the WorldWide Sommelier Association and President of the United Sommelier Associations of Spain. In any case, cork is gaining ground as the environmentally progressive choice for wine stoppers, and with FSC-certified cork you can be sure that the forest of origin is well looked after. So, why screw it up when you can buy FSC cork-bottled wine at your local supermarket? The Rainforest Alliance issued the FSC chain of custody certificate to Amorim, supplier of certified cork stoppers to Sainsbury's and The Co-Operative and the first company in the world to gain FSC status for its cork closures. The Rainforest Alliance is active in supporting and encouraging FSC-certification in the cork supply chain, from the cork-oak forests of the Mediterranean through manufacturers of wine-stoppers to the wineries themselves. Sources: Amorim, Cartavariada, Bloomberg.com, the GFTN newsletter, Seattle Times, PackagingNews CORTICEIRA AMORIM E CADEIA BRTÂNICA SAINSBURY’S ASSUMEM COMPROMISSO EM PROL DA VALORIZAÇÃO DA CORTIÇA NATURAL A Sainsbury’s - segunda maior cadeia de supermercados do Reino Unido - anunciou recentemente que, a partir de 2010, todas as rolhas de cortiça usadas nos seus vinhos serão certificadas pelo FSC – Forest Stewardship Council. O anúncio surge no seguimento de uma parceria com a CORTICEIRA AMORIM – fornecedor exclusivo de rolhas de cortiça da Sainsbury’s – e visa a preservação do montado de sobro, um ecossistema que presta valiosos serviços ambientais. Num trabalho feito em conjunto com várias cadeias de supermercados inglesas, a CORTICEIRA AMORIM tem, ao longo do último ano, desenvolvido esforços no sentido de garantir que o maior número de rolhas possível é produzido de acordo com os princípios definidos pelo FSC para as florestas sustentáveis. Recorde-se que a CORTICEIRA AMORIM, numa antevisão das necessidades da indústria vinícola, foi a primeira empresa de packaging do mundo a obter a certificação FSC, oferecendo aos seus clientes a possibilidade de optarem por cortiça originária de herdades florestais geridas de acordo com esta exigente norma internacional. O primeiro vinho a ser engarrafado com rolha certificada será o premiado Sainsbury's Blanc du Noirs Champagne, que foi vendido a uma média de 10.000 garrafas por semana no período que antecedeu o Natal. A previsão é que até ao final de 2010 a quantidade de vinhos engarrafados com rolhas FSC ascenda já a 6 milhões de unidades, número que tornará a Sainsbury’s no maior utilizador de cortiça certificada do mundo. Segundo Barry Dick, enólogo da Sainsbury’s: "a escolha do tipo de vedante que usamos é baseada numa série de factores, incluindo qualidade, estilo e denominação de origem que definem qual a rolha que melhor se adapta a cada vinho. Quando utilizamos a cortiça, é importante termos a certeza de que tem uma contribuição positiva para a biodiversidade e, em simultâneo, para a consistência e qualidade dos nossos vinhos, de forma a que estes se desenvolvam em todo o seu esplendor.” Para Victor Ribeiro, Director Geral da Unidade de Negócios Rolhas da CORTICEIRA AMORIM - fornecedor único de rolhas da Sainsbury’s - "O comércio do vinho do Reino Unido tem uma contribuição essencial para a manutenção deste desenvolvimento sustentável, que assegura um equilíbrio entre as questões ambientais, sociais e económicas. A rolha de cortiça continua a ser responsável por uma percentagem fundamental do valor criado pela indústria da cortiça, sendo que o tipo de liderança demonstrada pela Sainsbury's se reveste de uma grande importância dado que influenciará um comércio mais sustentável". Luís Neves Silva, responsável da WWF Portugal, realça a importância desta tomada de posição da Sainsbury’s: “O montado de sobro de Portugal e do Mediterrâneo é um recurso verdadeiramente único, com um papel determinante na preservação da biodiversidade. Tratando-se de um dos principais mercados de vinho do mundo, esta é uma clara indicação da tendência do mercado que a produção florestal deve continuar a acompanhar.” Vera Santos, representante do FSC em Portugal, nota que “este compromisso público da Sainsbury’s representa um reconhecimento do esforço de certificação feito em Portugal, mas também abre caminhos que esperamos levem a um aumento da área florestal certificada e de toda a cadeia de valor associada.” |
The association of Wood and Furniture Industries of Portugal (AIMMP - Associação das Indústrias de Madeira e Mobiliário) signed the MOU with TFT on 19 February 2010, formalising its commitment to the project as a TTAP partner.