In recent years, Ireland has been making significant progress in Forest Certification in the private sector. In 2018, as part of a major initiative supported by DAFM, two forestry producer groups achieved Forest Certification to an international forest management standard, the first in Ireland to achieve this recognition.

Since then, at least two private forestry companies have successfully achieved forest certification, while all major sawmills have Chain of Custody certification. This November, Ireland will host the International PEFC general assembly and certification week. It will give Ireland''s forestry sector a significant profile and reflects a sector that has considerable abilities and potential, despite the difficulties it currently faces. Acknowledging these developments, the Soil Association has just announced that a series of training courses will be held in Ireland in order to facilitate foresters who wish to access accredited training courses in forest certification, without having to travel abroad.

Soil Association has teamed up with forestry.ie to promote the courses to the wider forestry community. They will be held from 24 August – 3 September 2020. For more information, contact forestrytraining@soilassociation.org.

Donal Whelan is principal of Commercial Forestry Services Ltd and technical director of the Irish Timber Growers Association.