The Tradelink group’s future depends on the long-term availability of timber and allied products.
The group attaches great importance to good environmental management with a sound and bal- anced attitude to the forests’ eco-systems and the lifestyles of their dependent peoples.
The Tradelink group recognises its responsibility to customers, suppliers, staff and society as a whole in ensuring it trades responsibly and uses its commercial influence to effect positive envi- ronmental change wherever possible.
The Tradelink group, as members of the UK Timber Trade Federation, is committed to trading timber legally in compliance with the EUTR legislation of 2013 and the UKTR of 2021, as well as the Lacey Act in the USA.
The group adopted a structured system of monitoring its suppliers, by committing to the TTF Re- sponsible Purchasing Policy (RPP) in 2007. The commitments are specified in this document and include a comprehensive and robust due diligence system where Tradelink collect information about each supplier and every shipment made in order to assess the risk of illegally harvested timber being present and take appropriate mitigating actions if any risks are identified.
The Tradelink group has an on-going programme to monitor waste management and to con- serve resources by re-using, recycling or recovering value of by-products at its manufacturing sites.
Responsible Purchasing Policy Commitments
Management Structure
The Tradelink group has appointed a director responsible for the implementation of this Policy and will ensure that relevant environmental issues are discussed regularly at the highest level of management.
The Tradelink group will ensure that all employees associated with timber purchasing are aware of the Policy and its commitments and are given appropriate education and training to allow its full implementation.
Responsibility
The Tradelink group recognises that it has a responsibility to the environment, customers, suppliers and staff to base commercial activities on well-managed forests.
TTF Code of Conduct
The Tradelink group is committed to the Timber Trade Federation Code of Conduct and applies the Environmental Code of Practice to all wood procurement activities.
Legality
The Tradelink group is committed to purchasing all timber from legal sources and will seek evidence of compliance from suppliers that they are operating in accordance with the laws of the country. The company unreservedly condemns illegal logging practices and will keep informed of international processes and changes in legislation.
Endangered Species
The Tradelink group will not trade in timber species prohibited under Appendix 1 of the CITES legislation and will obtain the appropriate documents for trade in all other CITES listed timber species.
Traceability and Supplier Monitoring
The Tradelink group will perform a Risk Assessment on all Suppliers, as documented by the RPP. The assessment will seek to provide the clearest practicable information regarding the sources of raw material used in the manufacture of wood products.
This information will form part of purchasing decisions and will be made available on request to independent verifiers.
Timber Certification
The Tradelink group supports international efforts to improve forest management, for example, the development of credible timber certification schemes. The company recognises that the independent certification of forests and the process chain is a useful tool for providing assurances that the timber comes from legal and well-managed forests. The company will only accept, or use labels of certificates that include environmental or sustainability claims, supported by publicly available standards drawn up in a fully participatory, transparent and objective manner and backed by independent inspection.
Avoid Boycotts
The Tradelink group will not encourage boycotts or bans on specific species of timber. Notwithstanding this, the company will cease to purchase any timber and timber products supplied in breach of the Timber Trade Federation Code of Conduct and, in particular, the Environmental Code of Practice.
Continuous Improvement
The Tradelink group is committed to work with relevant trade organisations, NGOs and governments to develop its purchasing policy. The company is committed to continuously raise the proportion of timber and timber products, in accordance with the stepwise approach, that originates from legal and sustainably managed forests.
Reporting and Audit
The Tradelink group will report annually to the appointed auditors. The auditors will assess and verify the company’s progress and compliance under the policy.
Commitment
The management of Tradelink Wood Products Ltd hereby declare their commitment to implement and maintain the Chain of Custody requirements in accordance with the PEFC & FSC® Standards. In addition we commit not to place on the market wood products from controversial sources or for which a valid concern has not been resolved. Tradelink exercise and follow a due diligence system for all forest and tree based products that are purchased.
A copy of this document is available to all stakeholders on request.