FSC blocks four companies in the birch plywood supply chain FSC / Adél Strydom FSC / Adél Strydom July 7, 2026 Category : Integrity and Disputes FSC has blocked four certificate holders for making false claims and engaging in fraudulent activities. These blockages are based on evidence gathered during the birch plywood transaction verification (TV) loop. In May 2026, FSC blocked these certificate holders, in addition to the four certificate holders blocked in October 2025. The blocked companies are: Xuzhou Discover International Import & Export CO., LTD (FSC-C159783) for selling non-conforming birch plywood to customers while reporting zero sales of FSC materials to their certification body between 2020 and July 2024. Xuzhou Huayu Wood Industry Co., Ltd (FSC-C181040) for selling non-conforming birch plywood to customers while reporting zero sales with FSC claims to the certification body, including during the TV period between July 2022 and June 2023. Xuzhou Shelter Import & Export Co. LTD (FSC-C180645) (henceforth referred to as Xuzhou Shelter) for selling plywood products with false FSC claims in 2023 to Shelter Forest International Acquisition, Inc. (FSC-C146872), even though they declared no sale of FSC materials in 2021, 2022, and 2023. Furthermore, the organization repeatedly failed to cooperate with required oversight activities, including refusing to provide the required TV data, limiting access to Assurance Services International (ASI) during the October 2024 assessment, and subsequently becoming unreachable to their certification body and ASI. Shelter Forest International Acquisition, Inc. (FSC-C146872) (henceforth referred to as Shelter International) for knowingly purchasing materials with false FSC claims from Xuzhou Shelter Import & Export Co. Ltd. (FSC-C180645), the organization identified in the preceding bullet. Shelter International also hindered the investigation by repeatedly refusing to provide the required transaction documents to its certification body and was eventually terminated by their certification body. Originally launched by Assurance Services International (ASI) in 2023, the birch plywood TV loop included 78 certificate holders and analysed transaction data from July 2022 to June 2023. This TV loop started with traders and downstream buyers and then expanded to include the supplying sectors. It is a part of FSC’s Eurasia Integrity Workplan, which focuses on identifying and addressing various integrity risks in FSC-certified birch supply chains in the Eurasian region. Within the Eurasia Integrity Workplan, FSC and ASI initiated another TV loop in 2024 with a focus on birch wood panels for certificate holders with physical possession of certified material in the Eurasian region. Findings from the Eurasia birch wood panel TV loop supported the observations from the birch plywood TV loop. To protect the integrity of FSC certified birch plywood supply chains, FSC is implementing measures to strengthen the certification system. For instance: Delivering on the Advice Note, Public disclosure of ‘no FSC sales’ (ADV-STD-20-011_15_V1-0), FSC has introduced a new feature FSC Public Search, which lists the certificate holders who reported ‘No FSC Sales’ to their certification bodies during a specified evaluation period. Strengthening the supply chains of solid wood, veneer, or wood panels, as well as FSC-certified bamboo products in China by making annual audits mandatory for all certificate holders even if they did not buy or sell any FSC-certified materials through the Advice Note Remove option for waiving surveillance audit (ADV-STD-20-011-12_V2-1), available in page 10 of this document. FSC encourages certificate holders and stakeholders to strengthen due diligence by checking FSC Public Search for organizations declaring ‘No FSC Sales’ and confirming this with their suppliers. This way, any potentially fraudulent activities will be detected, thereby ensuring that non-certified birch products do not enter FSC-certified supply chains. Read more about the final results of the birch plywood TV loop here. Read more about the Eurasia birch TV loop here. Read more about the Eurasia Integrity Workplan here.