Why Do Forest Companies Change Their CSR Strategies? Responses to Market Demands and Public Regulation Through Dual-Certification
Abstract
Certification represents a comparatively new means of CSR, which is important in the forest industry. Forest companies and industries have previously certified their management and products in accordance with one of the competing systems (FSC: Forest Stewardship Council and PEFC: Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes), but recently, important large-scale companies in several countries have started to certify under both schemes. This study explores the causes and effects of this change in strategies, drawing on semi-structured interviews with Swedish forest companies and industries and European retailers. The results show that public bodies, not the least in the EU, as well as ENGOs, have transformed customer demands, resulting in dual-certification. This change in strategies has the potential to alter corporate environmental practices throughout the supply chains. These results call for further research on the under-studied issue of the interaction between public regulation and private forest governance.