Välinge Innovation has shared new information about its sustainability mission and FSC-certified Välinge Flooring products. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international non-profit, multistakeholder organization established in 1993 that promotes responsible management of the world's forests. 

Välinge Innovation said the FSC certification was a major milestone in the Swedish company’s sustainability goals — having worked closely with the FSC to adapt their production and work practices to satisfy the high demands of the Forest Stewardship Council.

“Since we created our production unit, one of the main goals was to offer FSC certified products,” said Pär Jönsson, supply chain manager, Välinge Innovation. “We built and adjusted our operation to fulfill the criteria for receiving the FSC label and when we received the certification in 2018, we couldn’t have been happier.”

Välinge Innovation’s high-volume, state-of-the-art production facility at the company's headquarters in Viken, Sweden, has an annual capacity of 6 million square meters of flooring — produced with its patented Woodura and Nadura surface technology, which display the FSC label. The FSC certification is periodically reviewed—much like an ISO certification—ensuring the sustainability and responsibility standards introduced in the certification process become an engrained part of the company’s work practices, and is something Välinge sees as a foundation to build upon, rather than the pinnacle of their environmental mission.

“It’s incredibly important to us that the raw materials in our products come from legal and sustainable forest management and that the employees in those forests and factories are treated fairly. For example, a large percentage of our high-quality oak veneer used in our Woodura surface tech comes from our sister company’s forests in Croatia,” Jönsson said. “We’ve noticed that our customers demand the same traceability, it’s really positive that people are engaged and want to know where the wood is sourced and what impact it has on the local population and on the planet.”

For more information, visit valingeflooring.com.