Chain of custody
Chain of custody is the chronological documentation and control of a product, material, or evidence as it passes between actors, locations, and processes. In sustainability schemes, it specifies how eligible inputs are identified, transferred, segregated, mixed, accounted for, and recorded so that an approved claim remains connected to qualifying output.
In simple terms
Chain of custody answers who handled a traceable asset, what happened to it, and how records preserve a claim through transfers and transformations. Scheme rules may require physical segregation, controlled mixing, mass balance, book-and-claim, or another defined model; these models do not make identical claims. Product traceability is broader and may capture origin, location, movement, and transformation even when no certification claim is being passed. Users should inspect the applicable standard, certified entities, product scope, transaction records, accounting period, and verification rather than treating a logo as proof of complete physical tracking.
Why it matters
Without custody controls, certified or preferred inputs can be confused with ineligible material and claims can exceed supported quantities. The method can underpin fair trade products, an environmental product declaration, and an ecolabel when their rules require verified material or product identity. It can also strengthen social sustainability evidence, but custody records alone do not demonstrate every social or environmental outcome.
Example
A paper manufacturer purchasing certified fibre verifies supplier certificates and claims, identifies eligible inputs, applies the scheme’s approved control model, and maintains production and sales records. When mixed inputs are permitted, customer documents use the corresponding claim. Auditors reconcile quantities and samples rather than assuming every fibre in every item came from one source.
How it differs
Product traceability
Chain of custody documents handling and preserves a defined claim through transfers and transformations; product traceability is the wider ability to follow a product’s origin, history, location, and changes.