Wood is a renewable resource, so has advantages over other materials, and responsible forestry is key to combatting climate change and promoting biodiversity.
Wood is an essential raw material for M&S. It provides the base material for many of our products - most notably furniture, but also many others, from tissues to hairbrushes and greeting cards. We couldn’t package our products, even run our business, without wood materials, so we appreciate the vital importance of forests and timber plantations. 
We also use man-made cellulosic fibres for clothing, which are also most often derived from trees. For more information on how we ensure forests are protected when sourcing these fibres, which include viscose as well as lyocell for example, read more on our website here.
Our approach
Our priority is to ensure zero deforestation is associated with wood used in products and packaging, and that wood sourced is legally harvested, forests with high conservation values (HCV) are protected, plantations converted from natural forest and woodland are avoided and traditional and civil rights of people and communities are upheld. 
Our Policy 
M&S Wood Sourcing Policies ensure wood is responsibility sourced across our Food, Clothing & Home business and in our property estate.
Our highest priority is to ensure that through our sourcing: wood is legally harvested, forests with high conservation value (HCV) are protected, plantations from natural woodland are avoided and the traditional and civil rights of people and communities are upheld. 
For more than 20 years there’s been consistent effort to improve our timber sources, with some of the most advanced third party standards and greatest legal safeguards now in place through UK Timber Regulation (UKTR),EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) and other policies. However, credible forest certification schemes such as FSC and PEFC still account for only a small fraction of the market.
Global Sourcing Principles
All our suppliers are required to comply with our Global Sourcing Principles and acknowledge the right of indigenous people and rural communities to give or withhold their Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) before new logging rights are allocated or plantations are developed. We recognise the unique social and environmental value of Intact Forest Landscapes and support activities designed to protect and enhance these areas.
