Peeling Back The Bark: Timber Tracking and Regulations Controlling the Peruvian Forest Supply Chain

Peeling Back The Bark: Timber Tracking and Regulations Controlling the Peruvian Forest Supply Chain

By Alfredo Rodriguez Zunino

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In the final quarter of 2019, the Peruvian Forest Service (SERFOR) published three new sets of “resoluciones ejecutivas” (executive resolutions) to improve tracking and controls in the forest supply chain. These enforceable directives laid out the documentation required to comply with the Peruvian Forest Law of 2011 and subsequent regulations (largely finalized in 2015).

The main directive provides technical explanations related to timber tracking, while the other two directives mandate changes for forest and sawmill industries. All authorized forest license holders and sawmills must now use “operation books” to record the execution of their management plan.

This new format allows forest harvests to be checked against approved management plans more easily and requires sawmills to reconcile the volume of logs processed against the volume of wood delivered to the processing mill. These changes are expected to help improve traceability and transparency within the supply chain.