How to Verify a Packaging Supplier’s Sustainability Certifications Are Real

Certification logos on a product page are easy to display and, unfortunately, just as easy to display without ever having earned them. Every major certification body — FSC, BPI, BRC — maintains a public database specifically so buyers don’t have to take a supplier’s word for it. Here’s how to actually check.

FSC Chain of Custody

FSC certificates are searchable through FSC’s public certificate database. Search by the certificate holder’s company name or by the certificate code itself (formatted like FSC-C######). A legitimate result will show four things worth checking every time: the certificate status (must read “Valid,” not “Expired,” “Suspended,” or “Withdrawn”), the certified company name (should match the supplier’s legal name, not just a trading name), the scope of certification (confirm it covers the actual product category — a certificate scoped to one material doesn’t extend to a different one), and the issuing certification body.

A detail buyers often miss: a company having an FSC certificate doesn’t automatically mean every product it sells is certified. The scope listed in the database is the actual boundary of the claim.

BPI Compostable Certification

BPI maintains a searchable online product database where every certified item is listed by manufacturer name, along with its certification reference number. Because BPI certification applies to specific finished products rather than a company in general, search for the exact product or SKU rather than just the manufacturer — a company can hold BPI certification for some items in its catalogue without every product qualifying.

BRC Global Standard for Packaging Materials

BRC (now BRCGS) certificates can be checked against the BRCGS official directory, which lists certificate number, grade, audit type, and expiry date. As with FSC, the certificate needs to be current — BRC certificates are reissued periodically following scheduled audits, so an expired certificate number found in old marketing material doesn’t confirm anything about current compliance.

Common Red Flags

• Certificate numbers that don’t appear in the issuing body’s database at all — the most direct sign of a fabricated claim.
• Expired or withdrawn certificates still referenced in current marketing materials.
• Company name mismatches between the certificate holder and the entity actually issuing invoices.
• Scope mismatches — a certificate valid for one material or product category being used to support a claim about a different one.
• No willingness to provide documentation on request — a supplier should be able to provide appropriate certification documentation for the applicable product or material on request. Public certificate numbers are preferable where available, but not every product-level record is published on a supplier’s website.

Verification Checklist

Check	Why It Matters	What Buyer Should Request	Corncomp Evidence Page
Certificate status is “Valid”	Expired, suspended, or withdrawn certificates don’t confirm current compliance	Current certificate number and status	Certifications
Certified company name matches	A trading name can mask which legal entity actually holds the certificate	The full legal entity name shown on the certificate	Certifications (company name note) / About Us
Certification scope matches the product/material	A certificate valid for one material or product doesn’t extend to a different one	A scope description tied to your specific SKU or specification	Certifications (applicability matrix)
Manufacturing facility matches claims	Confirms the audited site is where your order is actually produced	The certified site address tied to the certificate	Factory & Manufacturing
Documentation available on request	Not every product-level record is published on a supplier’s website	Order-specific certification documentation	Contact Corncomp

Need documentation for your specification? Contact Corncomp.

A Practical Habit

Verification takes a few minutes per certificate and is worth doing before a first purchase order, not after. For an ongoing supplier relationship, it’s worth rechecking periodically — certificates carry expiry dates and require reissuance, and a supplier who was legitimately certified two years ago may not still be.

Corncomp’s publicly available certificate numbers, standards, and verification links are listed on our Certifications page, specifically so this check takes a minute rather than a search; for order-specific documentation beyond what’s published there, contact our team directly. For background on what each certification actually verifies, see our guide to BPI vs FSC certification, or our material comparison, PLA vs bagasse vs FSC paper, for which claim applies to which product. Certification scope matters even more under tightening rules like the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive and US state plastic packaging laws.