Certificates

Care for our forests

In 2024, Van Nifterik is the first bamboo supplier to be certified with the FSC® mark. This means that we are now able to supply FSC® bamboo, answering an ever-increasing demand from our customers.

Van Nifterik has been independently audited to ensure compliance with the principles and criteria of FSC®. These are 10 criteria ranging from ecosystem conservation to employee social welfare. Forest management and monitoring are the core issues of FSC®, with the guarantee that the source of the products is responsible and transparent. The 10 criteria on which Van Nifterik was tested to receive the FSC® certificate are:

1. Van Nifterik complies with all applicable laws, regulations and nationally ratified international treaties, conventions and agreements.
2. Van Nifterik maintains or improves the social and economic well-being of employees.
3. Van Nifterik maintains and identifies the legal and customary rights of indigenous peoples to ownership, use and management of land, territories and resources affected by management activities.
4. Van Nifterik contributes to maintaining or improving the social and economic well-being of local communities.
5. Van Nifterik efficiently manages the range of multiple products and services to maintain or enhance long-term economic viability and the range of environmental and social benefits.
6. Van Nifterik maintains or restores management ecosystem services and environmental values, and avoids, restores or mitigates negative environmental impacts.
7. Van Nifterik has a management plan that is consistent with its policies and objectives proportionate to the scale, intensity and risks of its management activities. The management plan is implemented and updated based on monitoring information to promote adaptive management. The associated planning and procedural documentation shall be sufficient to guide staff, inform affected stakeholders and interested parties, and justify management decisions.
8. Van Nifterik demonstrates that progress towards achieving management objectives, the effects of management activities and the condition of the management, are monitored and evaluated in proportion to the scale, intensity and risk of management activities, to implement adaptive management.
9. Van Nifterik maintains and/or improves high conservation values in its management by applying a precautionary approach.
10. Management activities performed by or for Van Nifterik for its management shall be selected and implemented in accordance with Van Nifterik's economic, environmental and social policies and objectives and in compliance with the principles and criteria of the FSC® label.

Want to read more about the specific criteria for this label? Find out here:
https://my.fsc.org/my-en/fsc-principles-and-criteria.

Care for our quality

ISO 9001:2015 certification has been achieved by our colleagues in China in the year 2019. This ISO certification focuses on quality control within a company. Of course, we want to continue to meet these requirements, which is why we carry out the following actions:

• Keeping production processes up to date;
• Keeping the quality management system up to date;
• Training in quality management of executives;
• Quality control of product prior, during and after production;
• Monthly inspection of equipment and machinery;
• Daily care of waste and its reduction, separation and return.

This ensures:

• Happy employees in China and in Ede;
• Improvement in internal communication and reporting;
• A safe and healthy work environment;
• Increase in quality of service;
• Reliable and accurate production planning and delivery;
• Sustained quality standard through periodic evaluations;
• High-quality products.

Care for our planet

Early 2022, Van Nifterik also obtained the ISO 14001:2015 certification in China. This certificate is granted to companies that make improvements in the area of sustainable business operations, thus investing in their environmental management system. Despite the sustainable properties of bamboo, it is of course very important that we also take care of our planet in other ways. The ISO 14001:2015 standard sets the following requirements, among others:

• The company must have established an environmental policy with objectives;
• Its importance must be communicated by management within the organization;
• There must be operational planning for implementing the established goals;
• The organization must comply with the latest environmental laws and regulations.

Van Nifterik is proud to meet these requirements and we want to remain committed to people and the environment.

Care for our people

The Amfori BSCI mark has been achieved by our colleagues in China. The BSCI label is not a certificate, but a membership that requires companies to meet an internationally recognized code of conduct.

The 11 conditions of the BSCI:

• All workers have the right to form unions and bargain collectively.
• No discrimination at work when it comes to hiring, promotions, training, pension plans, etc.
• At least the legal minimum wage is paid. Workers are entitled to a living wage to be paid in a timely and complete manner.
• There are “normal” working hours, meaning no more than 48 hours per week, one day off every seven days, and no more than 12 hours of overtime.
• Overtime should not be too frequent and workers should receive higher pay for it.
• Clean and safe working conditions, which means corporal punishment, unusual punishment, sexual and other harassment by the employer is prohibited.
• No child labor, which means no children under 15 are employed, or under the minimum working age if it is higher than 15.
• Workers under 18 are not allowed to do dangerous work and must comply with compulsory education if there is one. They also do not work at night.
• There is secure employment, which means, among other things, a legally binding labor contract.
• There is no forced or prison labor.
• The environment is protected.
• There is ethical work practices without corruption.

We are proud to be part of a label with these codes of conduct. It may seem obvious, but our grip on the chain allows us to guarantee compliance.