Smallholder Forestry in the FSC System: A Review

Abstract

Since its inception in 1993, the Forest Stewardship Council certification scheme to assess the quality of responsible forest stewardship has aimed to certify both industrial-scale and smallholder forests. This article considers variations in FSC smallholder certification: single or group; Small and Low Intensity Managed Forests (SLIMF); and both company- and community-managed community forests in Global North and South countries. The classification of smallholders, as “subsistence surplus” or “sell-to-survive,” as proposed by the political ecologist Jason Moore, is also applied. Global North smallholders account for two-thirds of smallholder certified area and, in general, are able to meet the costs of FSC certification because of the demand for certified timber, their better socio-economic circumstances, a greater degree of group organization, and, in some cases, access to state subsidies. They are also more likely to be price-makers. Global South forests both house more of the planet’s remaining biodiversity and are more vulnerable to degradation. Economic and social realities dictate that global South smallholders are largely constrained by having to sell their timber to survive and fall in the price-takers category. In the absence of subsidies, price premiums, or a secure value chain, they are unable to afford renewal of FSC certification. The article concludes with an assessment of some realistic options for smallholder forestry certification.