# FSC Trace - Blockchain-based Forest Product Traceability

> FSC Trace is a blockchain-based platform by the Forest Stewardship Council for tracking FSC-certified forest products along global supply chains. The private blockchain solution enables companies to transparently document the origin and sustainability of their wood products and efficiently verify compliance with regulations such as the EU Deforestation Regulation. The system has been in beta phase since the first quarter of 2024 with pilot tests in selected supply chains.

**Sector:** Primary sector · **Industry:** Forestry · **Organisation:** Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) · **Maturity level:** Pilot

Canonical URL: https://www.sapientblock.com/en/use-cases/forest-stewardship-council-holzherkunft-lueckenlos-zertifizieren

## Documentation status

- **Project status:** Pilot
- **Evidence:** Evidence high
- **Editorial review:** Ufuk Avci, 15 April 2026

## Description

FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) developed FSC Trace as a blockchain-based platform to trace wood products from certified forest to end product. Unlike public blockchains, FSC uses a private blockchain with access restrictions — only authorised actors can read and write data. Primary driver: The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) requires first importers from 30.12.2026 to prove that products do not originate from areas deforested after 31.12.2020.

FSC was founded in 1993 and has 173 million hectares of certified forest worldwide. The existing Chain-of-Custody system (CoC) was paper-based — cumbersome and prone to fraud. FSC Trace solves this: every transaction between trading partners is documented on the blockchain with geolocation coordinates of the harvest site, harvest time, wood species, product groups, and quantities. The blockchain allows the next link in the chain to verify the origin without disclosing all involved companies — a critical data protection aspect for competing companies. FSC Trace is fully integrated with the FSC Risk Assessment Framework and earth observation tools: satellite images can be used to verify that no forest was cleared in the reported geolocation after 2020. For EUDR compliance: all due diligence relevant data is automatically consolidated and available on demand for authorities. Use is free for FSC license holders.

## Benefits

- Companies can significantly reduce their compliance costs through automated documentation and reporting while strengthening their market position through increased transparency.
- Blockchain technology ensures tamper-proof and transparent documentation of the entire supply chain of wood products.
- Automated compliance checks reduce administrative effort and significantly speed up the verification of regulatory requirements.
- Improved data quality and transparency strengthen the trust of all stakeholders in the sustainability of the products.
- Employees are freed from time-consuming manual documentation tasks and can focus on more strategic and value-adding activities.

## Challenges

- Companies must invest in new hardware and software infrastructure and comprehensively train their employees in the new technology.
- Integration into existing systems and business processes requires significant technical expertise and careful planning.
- Successful implementation depends on the willingness of all supply chain actors to share their data and establish new workflows.
- Employees must acquire new digital skills and adapt to changed workflows, which may initially lead to resistance.

## Technology foundation

FSC Trace uses a private blockchain technology, also called a consortium blockchain, where only direct trading partners have access to the stored information. This technology is particularly suitable for supply chains as it simultaneously ensures transparency for authorised actors and data protection for sensitive business information.

## Sources

- [FSC Trace - FSC Deutschland](https://www.fsc-deutschland.de/trace/)
- [FSC Trace - FSC Schweiz](https://fsc-schweiz.ch/fsctrace/)
- [Einsatz der Blockchain-Technologie beim FSC](https://www.fsc-deutschland.de/einsatz-der-blockchain-technologie-beim-fsc/)
- [FSC Trace Zweiseiter](https://www.fsc-deutschland.de/wp-content/uploads/20240917_FSC-Trace-Zweiseiter-DE.pdf)