Traditional Chinese DING presented during PEFC General Assembly

19 November 2014 News

Marking their first PEFC General Assembly as an endorsed national forest certification system, the China Forest Certification Council (CFCC) today presented William Street, Chairman of the Board of PEFC International, with a traditional Chinese gift known as a DING.

“We are very proud to present the DING to the whole PEFC family, as it represents our wishes for strong and reliable cooperation for a long time to come,” said Mr. Wang, Chair of CFCC. “This is a very special DING, as rather than the traditional bronze, it is instead made from CFCC-certified walnut fruit shell.”

The DING can trace its history back to ancient China when it was an important sacrificial utensil made from bronze used to express the wish of prosperity, stability and longevity. Since then, the gift has been given to demonstrate wishes of good cooperation, trust and reliability – most famously given by the Chinese central government to the UN in 1995.

“It is an honor to receive a gift that carries so much meaning, on behalf of everyone who makes up the PEFC alliance,” commented Mr. Street, following the presentation of the DING. “The endorsement of the Chinese national system represented a significant milestone for PEFC, with China not only one of the world’s largest manufacturers of forest products, but also among the countries with the largest forest area in the world."

The Chinese Forest Certification Scheme (CFCS) was endorsed back in February 2014 by the PEFC General Assembly, after demonstrating compliance with PEFC’s globally recognized Sustainability Benchmarks, a suite of requirements for covering a range of issues including standards development, sustainable forest management, Chain of Custody certification as well as certification and accreditation requirements.