UK conference calls for step change in hardwood marketing

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ITTO/Fordaq
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To end years of decline in UK hardwood consumption, a radical step change is required to improve two-way communication between the hardwood trade and key enduser and specifier groups, including product designers, architects, manufacturers, building contractors and retailers.

There is an urgent need, on the one hand, to improve trade understanding of the constraints and opportunities in different market segments, and on the other hand, to encourage market acceptance of a wider range of hardwood species and grades and to improve recognition of their technical and environmental attributes.

These were key messages of the UK Timber Trade Federation (TTF) conference on the UK hardwood market sponsored by The American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) held on 9 March.

The conference aimed to provide a more accurate picture of the hardwood market in the UK and to inform the activities of the TTF which aims to revitalise the market development work of their National Hardwood Division (NHD) in co-operation with AHEC and other producer associations.

TTF Director Dave Hopkins said that the TTF would draw on feedback received at the conference to develop an action plan for hardwood market development and provide the NHD with a budget for implementation.

The conference attracted around 80 participants including representatives of many of the UK’s largest hardwood importers and agencies and producer associations such as AHEC, Canada Wood French Timber, Malaysian Timber Council, and the European Sawmillers’ Organisation.

A series of presentations and a panel discussion provided insights into the current position of both tropical and temperate hardwoods in the UK and wider European market. It was noted that UK sawn hardwood consumption in 2016 was around 370,000 cu.m in both 2015 and 2016, down from 415,000 cu.m in 2014 and figures in excess of 525,000 cu.m per year prior to the financial crises.

The downward trend in UK consumption forms part of a wider trend across the EU where sawn hardwood consumption has fallen from in excess of 8 million cu.m in 2001 to around 5.5 million cu.m last year.

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