This infobrief explores the role of national assurance schemes that serve to verify the sustainability of forest and agricultural commodity value chains in driving sector-wide improvements and enabling market recognition with respect to such products (e.g., palm oil, cocoa, coffee, soy, beef and timber). While such schemes draw on the precedents set in the timber sector, this brief primarily focuses on forest and agricultural commodities with a view of informing decision makers, including policymakers, about sustainability benefits and levers of already established national assurance schemes. It analyses such schemes in terms of practical design features – governance, traceability, verification, incentives, and recognition pathways – that influence effectiveness as well as market and policy uptake. The analysis is grounded in discussions within the Forest, Agriculture and Commodity Trade (FACT) Dialogue, where producer and consumer country participants and the Dialogue co-chairs identified strong interest in sharing practical learnings on national schemes. This work responds to this demand, synthesizing experiences and questions raised across the Dialogue about what works, what does not, and how national approaches can further interface with, and complement or supplement international standards and trade requirements.
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National Assurance Schemes and Market Recognition: Emerging Opportunities and Takeaways in the FACT Dialogue and Beyond (English)- National Assurance Schemes and Market Recognition: Emerging Opportunities and Takeaways in the FACT Dialogue and Beyond (French)
- National Assurance Schemes and Market Recognition: Emerging Opportunities and Takeaways in the FACT Dialogue and Beyond (Spanish)
- National Assurance Schemes and Market Recognition: Emerging Opportunities and Takeaways in the FACT Dialogue and Beyond (Portuguese)
- National Assurance Schemes and Market Recognition: Emerging Opportunities and Takeaways in the FACT Dialogue and Beyond (Chinese)
