Show Me the Paperwork
Inside the Corporate Push for Verified Wood andthe Squeeze on Forest Landowners and Timber Suppliers
Fall 2025
By Stasia Kelly
\
The conversations around sustainability have changed.
What once lived in back-of-the-book CSR reports now dominates boardroom agendas, brand strategies and
procurement contracts.
For the companies that turn trees into paper towels, cardboard boxes and furniture, proving environmental stewardship isn’t just about good intentions anymore. It’s about verifiable claims — ones that hold up under scrutiny from customers, retailers, regulators and investors alike.
At Kimberly-Clark, that pressure has translated into a multi-layered sourcing strategy. But for Chris Weber, the company’s associate director of supply chain sustainability, the real shift is philosophical.
“Historically, companies made statements like, ‘We responsibly source our fiber,’” he said. “But now, there’s a real
expectation to provide evidence behind that.”
That expectation has placed third party forest certification squarely in the spotlight. Once a niche signal for high end
consumers, certification today serves as the connective tissue between landowners, mills, manufacturers, global
brands and a broad swath of consumers trying to meet climate, biodiversity and human rights benchmarks.
“We have a Forests, Lands and Agriculture Policy,” Weber explained. “It sets forth four commitments: that we source
only legally harvested timber; that we maintain a deforestation- and conversion- free commitment; that we aim to
reduce forest degradation; and that we support the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities.”
To meet those standards, Kimberly- Clark requires chain-of-custody certification across all wood fiber purchases.
“It’s very rare to find a pulp supplier that doesn’t have chain-of-custody certification, but we go a step further and
require that the certification be passed on to us,” Weber said.
That kind of rigor reflects a broader trend: certification is no longer a nice-to-have. It’s increasingly a prerequisite.
“Historically, companies made statements like, ‘We responsibly source our fiber.’ But now, there’s a real expectation to provide evidence behind that.”
— Chris Weber, Associate Director of Supply Chain Sustainability, Kimberly-Clark
PRACTICAL CHALLENGES OF CERTIFICATION STANDARDS
But those expectations introduce complexity in the timber-rich U.S. South, where private land ownership is deeply
fragmented and forestry is often a family business. For landowners and loggers, adapting to a world of high-standard procurement isn’t always straightforward.
“It gets tough. We work with a lot of small landowners, some that have owned their property for generations.
They’ve been managing their timber well for decades, but they don’t always have documentation to prove that to a certification system,” said Chad Nimmer of Pierce Timber Company in Blackshear, Georgia. “It’s not that they’re unwilling.
It’s that the process often feels like it was built for someone else — someone with more time, staff and scale.”
In his view, the certification world often operates in boardrooms far removed from the fields and forests it impacts.
“When the people creating these standards don’t talk to the folks on the ground, they end up building a system
that excludes them,” said Nimmer.
Nimmer said he often finds himself helping landowners navigate those requirements — not because they don’t practice
sustainable forestry, but because formal certification can feel like a distant process.
“They’re proud of how they manage their land. They want to do things the right way,” said Nimmer. “But it’s not
always obvious how to get from that intent to a stamp on paper that meets the standard.”
EYES ON THE GROUND
That need for clarity and coordination extends across the supply chain. At Georgia-Pacific, sustainability is guided
by a five-part Forest Stewardship Plan: protect, restore, procure, recover, recycle.
Each word reflects a line of work — tracking high-conservation areas, supporting habitat restoration after hurricanes and wildfires, sourcing wood through direct relationships with foresters, and reclaiming fiber through recycling systems.
But those expectations introduce complexity in the timber-rich U.S. South, where private land ownership is deeply
fragmented and forestry is often a family business. For landowners and loggers, adapting to a world of high-standard procurement isn’t always straightforward.
“It gets tough. We work with a lot of small landowners, some that have owned their property for generations.
They’ve been managing their timber well for decades, but they don’t always have documentation to prove that to a certification system,” said Chad Nimmer of Pierce Timber Company in Blackshear, Georgia. “It’s not that they’re unwilling.
It’s that the process often feels like it was built for someone else — someone with more time, staff and scale.”
In his view, the certification world often operates in boardrooms far removed from the fields and forests it impacts.
“When the people creating these standards don’t talk to the folks on the ground, they end up building a system
that excludes them,” said Nimmer.
Nimmer said he often finds himself helping landowners navigate those requirements — not because they don’t practice
sustainable forestry, but because formal certification can feel like a distant process.
“They’re proud of how they manage their land. They want to do things the right way,” said Nimmer. “But it’s not
always obvious how to get from that intent to a stamp on paper that meets the standard.”
EYES ON THE GROUND
That need for clarity and coordination extends across the supply chain. At Georgia-Pacific, sustainability is guided
by a five-part Forest Stewardship Plan: protect, restore, procure, recover, recycle.
Each word reflects a line of work — tracking high-conservation areas, supporting habitat restoration after hurricanes and wildfires, sourcing wood through direct relationships with foresters, and reclaiming fiber through recycling systems.
REACHING THE GENERAL PUBLIC
The pace of those changes is especially felt in communication.
“Let’s be honest, consumers have more important things, like family or work, on their minds than sustainable forest
management. When you’re at the grocery store between soccer practice and dinner, you just want an ‘easy button’ to help you make the right choice,” said Ethan Breitling, vice president for strategic communications at the National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO).
Breaking through to the general public, he said, is a challenge that unites the entire forest sector.
“We’ve made real progress, but now is the moment to double down. People are more interested than ever before in
the environmental impact of what they consume,” said Breitling. “Forest products are a natural solution: sustainable,
renewable and available to replace less sustainable alternatives.”
Certification does double duty: it meets internal requirements for sourcing standards while offering a simple, external
signal that’s easy to understand. But it doesn’t eliminate the need for trustbuilding.
“People want to know the products they’re buying are not just good on paper, but good in practice,” Breitling said. “The
forestry sector needs to show that it can meet that standard, and explain how.”
That’s a sentiment echoed in rural procurement offices.
“When you’re out talking with a landowner who’s never heard of FSC or SFI, you’ve got to take a step back and explain
why it matters to the people buying the paper towels at Walmart,” said Nimmer. “And a lot of times, they say, ‘Well, I’ve
always done it this way.’ And the truth is, they’ve probably done it right, but the market is asking that they prove it.”
TRUST, NOT MANDATES
Indeed, even within the certification community, there’s recognition that systems need to meet landowners where they are.
“Roughly 10% of forestland in the U.S. is certified,” said Tom Kain, U.S. director of forest management at the Forest
Stewardship Council (FSC). “That tells us there’s a lot of opportunity, and also a lot of work to do.”
Kain said FSC has been working to expand its footprint in regions where uptake has traditionally been low.
“We haven’t always had the presence in the South that we wanted,” he said. “But we’re changing that. We’re building relationships with landowners and mills, and we’re trying to demystify the process.”
Alongside that push, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) operates through State Implementation Committees that
pool resources from certified mills and landowners to translate standards into practical tools. In Georgia, that committee focuses on trust-building and measurable outcomes — logger training, landowner outreach and field guidance that fit the realities of working forestry in the U.S. South.
The pace of those changes is especially felt in communication.
“Let’s be honest, consumers have more important things, like family or work, on their minds than sustainable forest
management. When you’re at the grocery store between soccer practice and dinner, you just want an ‘easy button’ to help you make the right choice,” said Ethan Breitling, vice president for strategic communications at the National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO).
Breaking through to the general public, he said, is a challenge that unites the entire forest sector.
“We’ve made real progress, but now is the moment to double down. People are more interested than ever before in
the environmental impact of what they consume,” said Breitling. “Forest products are a natural solution: sustainable,
renewable and available to replace less sustainable alternatives.”
Certification does double duty: it meets internal requirements for sourcing standards while offering a simple, external
signal that’s easy to understand. But it doesn’t eliminate the need for trustbuilding.
“People want to know the products they’re buying are not just good on paper, but good in practice,” Breitling said. “The
forestry sector needs to show that it can meet that standard, and explain how.”
That’s a sentiment echoed in rural procurement offices.
“When you’re out talking with a landowner who’s never heard of FSC or SFI, you’ve got to take a step back and explain
why it matters to the people buying the paper towels at Walmart,” said Nimmer. “And a lot of times, they say, ‘Well, I’ve
always done it this way.’ And the truth is, they’ve probably done it right, but the market is asking that they prove it.”
TRUST, NOT MANDATES
Indeed, even within the certification community, there’s recognition that systems need to meet landowners where they are.
“Roughly 10% of forestland in the U.S. is certified,” said Tom Kain, U.S. director of forest management at the Forest
Stewardship Council (FSC). “That tells us there’s a lot of opportunity, and also a lot of work to do.”
Kain said FSC has been working to expand its footprint in regions where uptake has traditionally been low.
“We haven’t always had the presence in the South that we wanted,” he said. “But we’re changing that. We’re building relationships with landowners and mills, and we’re trying to demystify the process.”
Alongside that push, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) operates through State Implementation Committees that
pool resources from certified mills and landowners to translate standards into practical tools. In Georgia, that committee focuses on trust-building and measurable outcomes — logger training, landowner outreach and field guidance that fit the realities of working forestry in the U.S. South.
GFC’s Kelly Towe loads programming onto a handheld Harris Radio.
“Over 4 million acres of land within our sourcing basins are ones we don’t procure from,” said John Mulcahy, vice
president of stewardship at Georgia Pacific. “These include areas of ecological importance, rare species habitat and other conservation priorities.”
And while the company works within multiple certification systems, Mulcahy emphasized that certification is only part of the story. On-the-ground oversight is
equally critical.
“We have over 100 foresters and wood buyers in our basins,” he said. “They meet with landowners and loggers regularly. That kind of relationship gives us eyes on the ground and helps us maintain stewardship values across the supply chain.”
The challenge, Nimmer said, is that most landowners don’t wake up thinking about certification — they’re thinking about what’s best for their forest, their family and their next harvest. Translating that into a compliance-ready supply chain takes trust and time.
Nimmer, whose team operates as a daily link between forest and mill, is quick to point out that certification misses a
core reality on the ground.
“We might lose certified volume not because the logger doesn’t want to be sustainable,” said Nimmer. “But because
they’re trying to feed their family, and the economics don’t line up with certification requirements.”
It’s a disconnect that’s deeply felt in Georgia’s timber country, where family landowners and logging crews often
work at razor-thin margins and under tight timelines.
“We need to be able to walk the woods with landowners and explain what’s expected. And at the same time, we have
to make sure we can deliver what the mills need,” he said. “That’s not always easy when expectations change faster than the system does.”
One key example is the Georgia Master Timber Harvester program, administered by the SFI State Implementation Committee — Georgia’s only logger accreditation program that includes training on SFI expectations and Georgia’s Best Management Practices. The committee also supports an Inconsistent Practices hotline to flag and resolve potential issues constructively through a partnership with the Georgia Forestry Commission. The through-line is simple: build trust while raising the bar.
“SFI builds transparency and trust the same way good forestry gets done – locally and collaboratively,” said Gordy
Mouw, SFI’s director of network relations. “Our mission is to advance sustainability through forest-focused collaboration, and our State Implementation Committees put that into practice.”
RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
Nimmer has seen firsthand how complicated sustainability initiatives can become.
“Most landowners aren’t opposed to certification,” he said. “They just want to know what they’re signing up for, and
that they’re not jumping through hoops that don’t help their land or bottom line.”
He added that real progress happens through trust, not mandates. “Relationships still matter in this business,” said Nimmer. “You’ve got to sit down with people, walk the property, and talk through what’s realistic. If you try to
force it all through policy, you’ll miss a lot of good stewards.”
That support matters, especially when many landowners already practice sustainable forestry, whether they’re
certified or not.
“Most of the landowners in Georgia are doing the right things already,” said Weber. “They’re replanting, managing
for reforestation, watching for pests and disease. Certification is a way to provide evidence of that to customers
and partners.”
Ultimately, the demand for certified fiber is not likely to slow down. But neither is the industry’s ability to
respond. Still, bridging the gap between certification goals and on-the-ground realities remains one of the forestry
sector’s biggest challenges.
“It’s not that people don’t care about sustainability,” said Nimmer. “It’s that the systems don’t always meet folks where
they are.”
Building that bridge means not just explaining the system — it means inviting landowners and loggers into the room
where it’s shaped.
“The broader goal is shared: sustainable forestry, healthy forests and strong communities,” said Kain. “That’s something
everyone in the supply chain can rally around.” ■
John Casey is a strategic communications professional who supports clients through the art of storytelling. In his downtime, John can be found hunting and fishing on his family’s centennial farm in Northwest Georgia.
president of stewardship at Georgia Pacific. “These include areas of ecological importance, rare species habitat and other conservation priorities.”
And while the company works within multiple certification systems, Mulcahy emphasized that certification is only part of the story. On-the-ground oversight is
equally critical.
“We have over 100 foresters and wood buyers in our basins,” he said. “They meet with landowners and loggers regularly. That kind of relationship gives us eyes on the ground and helps us maintain stewardship values across the supply chain.”
The challenge, Nimmer said, is that most landowners don’t wake up thinking about certification — they’re thinking about what’s best for their forest, their family and their next harvest. Translating that into a compliance-ready supply chain takes trust and time.
Nimmer, whose team operates as a daily link between forest and mill, is quick to point out that certification misses a
core reality on the ground.
“We might lose certified volume not because the logger doesn’t want to be sustainable,” said Nimmer. “But because
they’re trying to feed their family, and the economics don’t line up with certification requirements.”
It’s a disconnect that’s deeply felt in Georgia’s timber country, where family landowners and logging crews often
work at razor-thin margins and under tight timelines.
“We need to be able to walk the woods with landowners and explain what’s expected. And at the same time, we have
to make sure we can deliver what the mills need,” he said. “That’s not always easy when expectations change faster than the system does.”
One key example is the Georgia Master Timber Harvester program, administered by the SFI State Implementation Committee — Georgia’s only logger accreditation program that includes training on SFI expectations and Georgia’s Best Management Practices. The committee also supports an Inconsistent Practices hotline to flag and resolve potential issues constructively through a partnership with the Georgia Forestry Commission. The through-line is simple: build trust while raising the bar.
“SFI builds transparency and trust the same way good forestry gets done – locally and collaboratively,” said Gordy
Mouw, SFI’s director of network relations. “Our mission is to advance sustainability through forest-focused collaboration, and our State Implementation Committees put that into practice.”
RELATIONSHIPS MATTER
Nimmer has seen firsthand how complicated sustainability initiatives can become.
“Most landowners aren’t opposed to certification,” he said. “They just want to know what they’re signing up for, and
that they’re not jumping through hoops that don’t help their land or bottom line.”
He added that real progress happens through trust, not mandates. “Relationships still matter in this business,” said Nimmer. “You’ve got to sit down with people, walk the property, and talk through what’s realistic. If you try to
force it all through policy, you’ll miss a lot of good stewards.”
That support matters, especially when many landowners already practice sustainable forestry, whether they’re
certified or not.
“Most of the landowners in Georgia are doing the right things already,” said Weber. “They’re replanting, managing
for reforestation, watching for pests and disease. Certification is a way to provide evidence of that to customers
and partners.”
Ultimately, the demand for certified fiber is not likely to slow down. But neither is the industry’s ability to
respond. Still, bridging the gap between certification goals and on-the-ground realities remains one of the forestry
sector’s biggest challenges.
“It’s not that people don’t care about sustainability,” said Nimmer. “It’s that the systems don’t always meet folks where
they are.”
Building that bridge means not just explaining the system — it means inviting landowners and loggers into the room
where it’s shaped.
“The broader goal is shared: sustainable forestry, healthy forests and strong communities,” said Kain. “That’s something
everyone in the supply chain can rally around.” ■
John Casey is a strategic communications professional who supports clients through the art of storytelling. In his downtime, John can be found hunting and fishing on his family’s centennial farm in Northwest Georgia.
|
Georgia Forestry Magazine is published by HL Strategy, an integrated marketing and communications firm focused on our nation's biggest challenges and opportunities. Learn more at hlstrategy.com
|
|
|