New measure for boosting wood processing
Wednesday 27 Nov 2019
The Government will further strengthen New Zealand’s wood processing
sectoras part of our focus on ‘value over volume’ in our forestry industry, Forestry
Minister Shane Jones says.
Minister Jones will today meet with forestry representatives in Northland to signal new
measures to help the industry, including a log buyer registration scheme that would see
more logs processed onshore and provide better job certainty in regional communities.
“Our commercial forestry and wood processing sector faces significant challenges,”
Shane Jones said.
“It is a fragmented industry and there is significant value to be gained by increasing
cooperation between those who own the land, own the trees, process them, and export
them. The focus has historically been on volume rather than adding value and high export
prices have created strong incentives to export unprocessed logs.
“The Government is also well aware of looming log supply constraints for domestic
processors over the coming decades,” Shane Jones said.
Today, two research reports commissioned by Te Uru Rakau from Forme Consulting and
Scion into log supply issues in Northland were also released. The reports note the region
will see restricted supply worsen in the early 2020s, with shortages in Canterbury,
Southland and the southern North Island emerging in the late 2020s.
“The package of measures I have asked my officials to explore won’t fix things overnight
but they will help provide surety of supply and assurance of the sustainability of New
Zealand wood for markets.
“The most significant initiative would be the introduction of a professional registration
scheme for log buyers as well as a standardised sales and purchase contract. This would
ensure small growers receive impartial and comprehensive advice from log buyers and
provide for redress in the event of unprofessional behaviour."
“I also propose to create a national definition of wood legality, which will support access
for our forestry exports internationally. The global illegal log trade is a substantial and an
ongoing challenge, which is undermining and threatening progress on sustainable
development and climate change objectives."
“We’re also going to increase the flow of transparent information for the sector such as
publishing a harvest and sales information series and help small forest growers pool their
resources to achieve economies of scale. From my regular discussions with those in the
industry, I know they understand the need for this nationally-focused approach to provide
certainty and longevity for the wider sector."
“Cabinet has directed officials to pursue these measures and I intend to report back early
next year. This Government is committed to forestry as an industry that can play an
important role in regional economic development, help Maori fulfil their aspirations for their
land and deliver environmental benefits,” Shane Jones said.

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