The French box shipping heavyweight will toughen its rules for shipping protected species, draw up a black list of exporters suspected of illicit trafficking, and freeze timber exports from The Gambia to help prevent deforestation.
CMA CGM, the French container giant, is tightening rules on the carriage of protected species as part of a corporate social responsibility policy.
Shippers must state whether a species is covered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which regulates the trade, and provide the required export permits whenever animals or plants are carried.
CMA CGM will draw up a black list of exporters suspected of trafficking, train its sales agents in the CITES rules and tighten customer audit checks in coming months.
Guilhem Isaac Georges, the company’s sustainability director, said it would freeze timber exports from The Gambia after suspicions of undeclared rosewood in cargo shipments.
“Deforestation in Africa is a global problem so let’s join our forces to fight it,” he said.
Mr Isaac Georges said endangered trees were logged in Senegal, transported to The Gambia where export bans were lax, then sold mainly to China. It was almost impossible to tell how much illegal wood was being shipped as “unprocessed wood”.
Unknowingly carrying illegal cargo was also a commercial risk for shipping companies, whose vessels could be detained, he added.
Mr Isaac Georges said a red list would push commercial agents to tighten due diligence with clients, while a black list would stop companies trading with them.
Source: lloyd’s
