20-01-2022
Belgian wood, textile and furniture federation Fedustria has called for timber to be made a strategic raw material to protect supply for European industry.
Global demand for timber, led by the world’s leading consumer China has steadily increased in recent years, peaking in the pandemic, says the federation.
This has even led to Belgian and other European processors often having difficulties buying the volumes they need for production due the extremely high prices offered other buyers,
it says. If that is not enough, they are subsequently faced with competition from imported products or semi-finished goods made from the same wood. It’s a situation that’s difficult to justify economically.
With Russia announcing introduction of a log export ban from January 1 2022, it’s feared that more Chinese buyers will look to European supplies than ever, with very serious consequences expected for European wood-processing industries.
Free trade is an important principle for Europe however this should not be at the expense of our own manufacturing industry, our source of prosperity,
states Fedustria. Wood should be regarded as a strategic raw material, partly in view of the role it plays in the climate debate. Before it can be exported, it should have undergone at least one stage of processing. This is the only way to guarantee the future of companies and employment in this important sector for Europe.
Kilde: ETTF