Forest growth and policy trends point to declining European wood production

Current harvest levels in most European countries are still well below increment. In fact, drawing on Eurostat data, the European European Organization of the Sawmill Industry (EOS) show that the total stock of timber standing in EU27 forests increased by nearly 30% in the twenty year period between 2000 and 2020, with the stock rising in every Member State. In total, an estimated 65% of the net annual increment of wood in EU forests was removed by the logging industry in 2020. However, EOS also point out that other forest trends are negatively impacting on log availability in ...