Goho(=Legal) Wood NAVI

For Exporters of wood and wood products to Japan

For the purpose of contributing to a solution for international illegal logging, the government of Japan has introduced a new system to give a priority to governmental purchases of wood and wood products that can be identified by their legality based on the logging of forests since April, 2006.

This system puts governmental agencies under obligation to purchase the legalized wood and its related products as a top priority and requests that local government to make efforts to do the same although it is not compulsory to them. This system is also expected to spread to the procurement of private enterprises.

Japanese industries such as the Japan Federation of Wood industry Association and nearly 140 related organizations of woods, forestry and timber industries in a central and local areas of Japan, decided on a self course of action to supply the legalized wood and wood products which tackled the issue of the illegal logging.

We, the Council for tackling illegal logging issue hope for exporters who export wood and wood products to Japan to tackle this issue with us.

Regarding the governmental procurement of wood and wood products, Government of Japan established a standard that unprocessed timbers used as materials must be legalized in accordance with the forest acts of their country of origin.

The Forestry Agency of Japan has prepared "A guideline to prove the legality and sustainability of wood and wood products, February 15, 2006" as evidence of proof.

The following is an entire translation of this guideline from Japanese to English. We would like to strongly request you to prove the legality of your wood and wood products in accordance with the guideline if you export wood and wood products to Japan.

Council for Tackling illegal Logging Issue