San Diego, Calif. -- DuChateau terminated its trademark license agreement with the Forest Stewardship Council, which also triggered the termination of their FSC chain-of-custody certification, according to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). This decision follows FSC’s decision to suspend the trademark license agreement for DuChateau in May.

FSC suspended DuChateau’s trademark license agreement after an investigation by Accreditation Services International (ASI), triggered by a Sierra Club complaint, concluded that FSC claims made on a large volume of flooring sold as FSC 100% certified by DuChateau were not valid. The company’s supplier, Zhejiang Yuhua Timber Co., Ltd, also had its FSC certificate terminated.

“DuChateau sent notice to terminate our FSC certification on July 5, 2018,” said Benjamin Buzali, DuChateau president. “Sustainability has been, and remains, a core value of DuChateau. As unfortunate as this decision was, we view this as an opportunity to review and strengthen our own internal compliance and environmental procedures. To ensure we will continue to be a leader in our industry, we want to take the time and due diligence required to implement best-in-class solutions. We look forward to sharing some of the programs in development later this year.”

Because DuChateau chose to leave the FSC system, FSC decided to block DuChateau from certification for the foreseeable future, an FSC statement said. The company’s supplier, who left the system rather than correct nonconformities, is also blocked from certification.

For more information, visit duchateau.com or ic.fsc.org.