Gin Kurniawan
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nJepara<\/p>\n
Ecolabeling haunts the town of teak wood<\/p>\n
Ecolabelling. This world, for most of the furniture makers in
\nJepara, is just like a ghost. The ecolabeling requirement imposed
\nby some Western countries is not only frightening but is also
\nthreatening their existence.<\/p>\n
Ecolabeling is so popular, even among thousands of workers
\ninvolved in the teak furniture industry in the town, the home of
\nover 1,000 large and small furniture makers.<\/p>\n
Their future really depends on the ability of local wood
\nproducers to obtain the ecolabeling certificate. If not, Jepara
\ncould lose its prestige as one of the world's largest teak
\nfurniture producers.<\/p>\n
Ecolabeling has come to haunt the town since American
\ncertification body Rainforest Alliance's (RA) temporarily
\nsuspended the ecolabeling certificate awarded to state-owned
\ntimber company PT Perhutani in August this year.<\/p>\n
Although the suspension would, in fact, become effective on
\nOct. 20, next week, some importers, particularly from Europe,
\nhave reduced their orders. Teak furniture exports from Jepara
\nhave declined by over 70 percent since the suspension was
\nimposed.<\/p>\n
\"Our products were rejected in Germany due to the ecolabeling
\nproblem,\" said Arifin Mubarok, one of the largest furniture
\nexporters in the town.<\/p>\n
Arifin, chairman of the local chapter of the Indonesian
\nIndigenous Businessmen's Association (HIPPI), hoped that
\nPerhutani, the only teak supplier in the country, could get
\nsimilar certificates from other companies.<\/p>\n
\"If the company fails to get a new one, our exports,
\nparticularly to European countries, will be in jeopardy,\" he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
According to him, European buyers are very sensitive to the
\necolabeling issue. Many importers from the region have halted
\ntheir orders because the raw materials for Jepara teak furniture
\nare no longer procured from a certified wood producer.<\/p>\n
\"Based on information I have obtained, many European producers
\nhave stopped importing teak furniture from Jepara for ecolabeling
\nreasons,\" said Akhmad Fauzi, the director of CV Sipra, which
\nproduces outdoor furniture.<\/p>\n
According to the International Tropical Timber Organization's
\nrules, beginning in 2001, ecolabeling certification should become
\na prerequisite for producers of tropical wood to gain access to
\nthe world's markets.<\/p>\n
The measure also affects furniture producers because they
\nshould also use raw materials from certified timber companies to
\nsell their products overseas.<\/p>\n
PT Perhutani, which produces 700,000 cubic meters of teak per
\nyear, is among the first timber companies to have obtained an
\nelolabeling certificate.<\/p>\n
According to RA, the suspension was imposed due to the
\ncompany's noncompliance with the standards required by the Forest
\nStewardship Council, the Mexico-based international organization
\nthat accredits certification firms.<\/p>\n
But Perhutani said that the charge was not true. \"We will
\ncontinue to adopt sustainable forest management, with or without
\nthe certificate,\" Perhutani's president Marsanto, M.S. said
\nrecently.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gin-kurniawan-1447899208",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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