The Thünen Centre of Competence on the Origin of Timber is the German central contact facility for government agencies, timber trade, consumers and associations to verify the species of wood and/or wood products and its origin. Its xylotheque comprises over 45,000 specimens representing 12,000 species. Microscopic wood identification: For official/judicable reports on wood identification. Up to 80 structural-anatomical characters can be used for definitive wood identification. Microscopic analyses enable identification of all solid wood specimens including very thin veneer layers (thickness lesser than 0.20 mm) incl. individual wood strands and chips. Wood Genetics: Develops molecular genetic markers (genetic barcodes) to distinguish tree species, even species that cannot be separated by anatomical methods. Assessment of forest certification and verification of legal compliance: Responsible for the assessment of forest certification schemes within the German regulation for the public procurement for wood and wood-based products. This includes both the surveillance of the development of the standards of the certification systems which are under periodical revision and the decision concerning the acceptance of certificates of the systems, comparable certificates or individual specifications in terms of the procurement regulation.