Sep 18, 2008. /Lesprom.com/. The new measures for Indonesian timber companies, which will be required to have their inventory inspected from the start of the supply chain to ensure it is from legal sources. The Ministry of Forestry will appoint independent auditors and consult local stakeholders to verify the timber chain of custody. The auditors will conduct field checks where timber is logged, ITTO reported. In addition, companies utilizing timber as a raw material will need to obtain official legal certification by the government to verify their source materials as legal. Companies that do not comply with the above system will be prosecuted or have their operating licences revoked. The new system, called the Wood Legality Verification System (SVLK), will replace the current approach to inspecting legal documentation for timber by the Forestry Industry Revitalization Agency (BRIK). The Indonesian Ecolabeling Institute’s (LEI) Executive Director, Taufik Alamin, said the new system was necessary as several importing countries including Britain and Japan require documentation certifying the legality of timber from the source. An LEI spokesperson said it would help by acting as auditors and licensing authorities under the new system.LEI and NGOs have been actively involved in the timber verification process since 2003, when Indonesia signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Britain to address illegal logging. Demand for Indonesia’s timber is predicted to reach 30 million cubic metres this year, with a logging quota of 9.1 million cubic metres set by the forestry ministry. There are currently 324 logging permit holders in Indonesia that have the capacity to harvest 22 million cubic metres of timber per year.