It is difficult for furniture companies to enter the EU market because of the "identity card" of logs.

The European Union's Country of Origin Labeling Law requires that wood products imported into the EU market must obtain FSC “identity cards”, which means that the wood purchased by the manufacturer is produced from legally developed forests. This bill will take effect on March 3, 2013. However, the reporter interviewed at the Canton Fair found that the regulations have had an impact on furniture export enterprises.

"I am afraid that it is very difficult to do business in Europe in the future." Mr. Chen, a furniture export enterprise manager in Hangzhou, told reporters reluctantly at the 109th Canton Fair.

It turned out that at the end of last year, the EU passed a regulation called the Country of Origin Labeling Law, which imposed obligations on importers engaged in log products from the EU market. The bill requires timber companies to provide legal proof of wood products that are at risk of illegality and trace back to the country of origin of the timber. This regulation will take effect on March 3, 2013, but it has now had an impact on the export of furniture companies.

Many people in the Canton Fair who manage furniture exports told reporters that the introduction of this regulation will make it difficult for furniture exporters of about 30% to enter the EU market. In the view of some SMEs, this bill is just an excuse for EU manufacturing, only to add to China's furniture export enterprises. “That is to say, furniture made from wood without 'ID card' will not be exported to the EU.” Mr. Chen said. The so-called "ID card" refers to the FSC certification, which is the tracking of the production and sales chain of the whole process of the product from the source of the forest, which proves that the wood purchased by the enterprise is produced from the legally developed forest. Once a timber or furniture manufacturer labels a FSC forest certification, it is equivalent to a “passport” in the global forestry market. The company has FSC forest certification, indicating that their wood and its products are from well-managed forests.

Insiders pointed out that the bill is a model of the Lacey Act introduced last year in the United States to ensure that buyers clearly know the origin of imported raw materials for sale in Europe.

Since some companies import logs and timber products from Russia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea, many of them have illegal logging problems, so the European “identity card” requirements may cause some furniture companies to miss orders. .

Orders from FSC certified companies are not reduced

The reporter visited some furniture companies in the Canton Fair and found that the enterprises that have the FSC certificate are unimpeded.

When the reporter asked about the bill, Guangzhou Yuexiu Enterprise Manager Lin Weijian immediately presented the FSC certificate to the reporter. He told reporters that the logs used in the wooden doors produced by the company are all woods with “identity cards” purchased from Germany, France and other countries.

Lin Weijian said that although there are still two years before the official entry into force of the regulations, as early as the last Canton Fair, European customers have already proposed FSC certification. He said that because the company is undertaking medium and high-end orders, the wood used has always been certified products from European countries, so the bill did not cause losses to the company.

Li Jiawei, director of Shandong Caopu Technology Co., Ltd., also told reporters that since the wood used by the company has already passed this certification, it is not worried about this. Li Jiawei said business for many years and IKEA cooperate more sensitive to the European market, in order to meet customer demands, the company has been sourcing New Zealand and the United States of logs, so it has not been dragged down by this.

Both Lin Weijian and Li Jiawei bluntly stated that the use of "illegal logs" was concentrated on SMEs, and they would suffer more serious effects.

Some SMEs are caught off guard

"Unprepared." A business executive who did not want to be named used this term to describe the current situation. "We can only give up the EU market to resell East Asia and other places." He said.

The person in charge also told reporters that as a small and medium-sized enterprise, it can only attract customers' attention by low prices. If it is to purchase the so-called "identity card" logs from Europe and the United States, it will lose its competitive advantage and it will be difficult in the market. Stand on the ground. "Reversely, even if the logs of European and American countries are purchased, the company can't afford the cost of verification. The cost of the certification is 30,000 to 50,000 yuan, and then it will be recertified once a year." The person in charge said.

It is reported that China's exports to the EU account for more than one-third of China's global furniture exports. There is a voice in the industry that the strong export lineup of Chinese furniture has given birth to this ill-conceived bill. When the EU passed the "Country of Origin Labeling Law" last year, there were different voices within the EU. Southern European countries tried to promote the European market to avoid the impact of low-priced imported goods (especially Asian goods), and tried to promote the "Country of Origin Labeling Law". legislation. However, countries such as the United Kingdom and Sweden have expressed opposition and believe that this law is suspected of protectionism and threats to competition.

In addition, many small and medium-sized enterprises interviewed by reporters are worried that this bill will be abused. “As long as someone reports it, the EU has the right to investigate and even penalize the legality of all furniture timber sources. Before the introduction of the Lacey Act in the United States, companies in the industry have been subjected to lengthy investigations for being maliciously reported. The precedent that was dragged down." The above-mentioned person in charge told reporters.