NTTA share of sustainably produced wood increased slightly in 2018

In 2018, 91.9% of NTTA timber imports came from sustainably managed forest'

The NTTA annually monitors the sustainable origin of the imported timber its members have placed on the Dutch market and Probos analyzes this data. The NTTA does this based on the importance of sustainably produced timber and sustainably managed forests. After all, timber is the bio-based material that contributes to climate objectives, provided it comes from sustainably managed forests.

The report shows that in 2018, the members of the NTTA had about 1.8 million m³softwood, hardwood and panel materials imported, of which 91.9% with a certificate of sustainable forest management (PEFC and FSC).Compared to 2017, this overall percentage is almost unchanged. The report shows varying results for the categories. In softwood, the share increased from 98.4% in 2017 to 99.1% in 2018. Panel material shows an increase from 93.5% in 2017 to 94.5% in 2018. Temperate hardwood increases from 46.6% in 2017 to 59.6% in 2018. And finally, tropical hardwood drops from 66.1% in 2017 to 63.6% in 2018. NTTA director Paul van den Heuvel: "What is striking is that the sustainability percentages of softwood, temperate hardwood and board material continued to increase and that the percentage of tropical hardwood decreased slightly compared to 2017. This confirms the signals that NTTA members reported on this during the year and gives even greater emphasis to the attention we are devoting to it through the Covenant to Promote Sustainable Forest Management."

The NTTA's ambitions are high. Through the Covenant to Promote Sustainable Forest Management, the NTTA works together with 23 parties, including ministries, institutions, unions and industries, to make the Dutch market more sustainable and to promote sustainable forest management. The monitoring results show that promoting sustainable forest management is as important as ever, given all the global developments. The covenant works on both market demand and forest supply. The covenant runs until 2020.

The Royal Association of Dutch Timber Companies (NTTA) is the umbrella trade association of 216 wholesale timber and board companies, including branches. The majority of all employees in the industry (approximately 5,500) are employed by NTTA member companies. More information about the NTTA can be found at www.vvnh.nl.