In your opinion, what are the key factors that make a sustainability certification scheme effective, particularly for biobased products?
For a certification scheme to be truly effective, it needs to go beyond just setting requirements – it should create real change. A strong standard ensures that sustainability is not just a box to tick but a meaningful commitment to environmental, social, and economic responsibility. This means looking at everything from GHG reductions and biodiversity protection to ethical labour practices and long-term viability.
A good scheme must also be adaptable. The world is changing fast, and new sustainability challenges emerge all the time. Engaging a wide range of stakeholders—industry, civil society, and policymakers – helps ensure that certification remains relevant and practical. Equally important is credibility: a certification should be built on rigorous assessment, transparency, and independent oversight so that companies, investors, and consumers can trust it.
I believe that RSB’s sustainability framework – including our certification system and schemes – embodies these principles, offering a globally recognised, multi-stakeholder approach that drives real impact in the transition to a sustainable bioeconomy.
What strategies do you think are most effective in engaging stakeholders in the certification process, especially in the context of biobased products?
Engagement needs to be more than just consultation – it has to be meaningful. Bringing people into the conversation early and often creates buy-in and helps build standards that work in practice. Open discussion platforms, working groups, and training initiatives are all useful tools for keeping stakeholders involved. This is something that RSB puts a lot of emphasis on throughout its standards.
It’s also about making certification accessible. The process can seem complex, but with the right guidance and capacity-building, it becomes an opportunity rather than a hurdle. By fostering collaboration and ensuring that different perspectives are heard, certification becomes a shared effort, rather than a top-down requirement.
For example, RSB launched its online e-learning platform that includes courses on sustainability certification, demystifying key steps along the certification process and empowering operators to identify and mitigate risks in their production processes, while mastering best practices for sustainable resource management.
What innovations in sustainability certification do you believe are essential for enhancing the credibility of biobased products in the marketplace?
Markets are demanding more transparency and stronger evidence of sustainability. One critical element is having a robust sustainability standard to guide the development of these products. The RSB Advanced Products Standard ensures that bio-based and circular materials meet the highest environmental and social criteria, providing a clear framework for innovation and responsible production.
Another important innovation is book and claim, which allows companies to support sustainable production even if they can’t source certified materials directly. It’s a way to bridge gaps in supply chains while still ensuring positive impacts. RSB is leading in this field with the RSB Book & Claim System, which provides a trusted and third-party verified mechanism for tracking the sustainability attributes of bio-based and circular fuels without requiring a direct physical connection between producers and end-users.
In addition, ensuring that impacts go beyond GHG reductions and account for the entire scope of sustainability is also essential. Interestingly, RSB’s work on linking real positive sustainability impacts with market demand through its RSB Impact Claims is worth noting here. By moving beyond simple carbon accounting, it allows companies to demonstrate contributions to biodiversity conservation, soil health, water security, and social equity – key elements in ensuring a just and sustainable transition to a bio-based economy.
RSB is at the forefront of these advancements, ensuring that companies have credible, science-based solutions to align their sustainability commitments with measurable results. Ultimately, certification should be a tool for transformation, helping businesses move beyond compliance to real leadership in sustainability.
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