Statistics on the harvesting and primary processing of timber grown in the UK, and on production and trade of wood products. Statistics are published annually: provisional data in May and final figures in September (in Forestry Statistics and Forestry Facts & Figures).
Publications
Summary statistics on woodland area, planting, timber, trade, environment, recreation, employment and finance for the UK.
Detailed statistics on woodland area, planting, timber, trade, environment, recreation, employment, finance and prices for the UK.
Coniferous standing sales price index and sawlog price index for Great Britain.
Provisional UK statistics on timber removals, deliveries, production of primary wood products and trade in wood and wood products.
Overview
Timber harvesting:
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wood production
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softwood removals survey
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softwood availability forecast
Deliveries of UK grown roundwood:
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sawmill survey
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survey of large sawmills
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pulp and paper
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woodbased panels
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fencing and miscellaneous products
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wood energy
Trade in wood products:
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apparent consumption
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import and export quantities
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import and export values
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world trade
Businesses:
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employment
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health and safety
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numbers of businesses
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financial returns
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Gross Value Added
Timber prices:
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coniferous standing sales
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coniferous sawlogs
Technical Data
UK Timber
Statistics on timber are obtained from a number of sources. For wood production (removals), data are compiled from:
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Forestry Commission (FC) and Forest Service (FS) administrative records of removals from FC/ FS woodlands
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Private Sector Softwood Removals Survey for softwood removals from non-FC/ FS woodlands, and
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deliveries of hardwood to wood processing industries (see below) for total hardwood removals
There is no source of data for hardwood removals from non-FC/ FS woodlands, so these are estimated to be:
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deliveries of hardwood to wood processing industries (see below), minus
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hardwood removals from FC/ FS woodlands
Deliveries are estimated from the following sources:
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Sawmill Survey
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Confederation of Paper Industries
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UK Forest Products Association
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Wood Panel Industries Federation
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Survey of Round Fencing Manufacturers
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shavings manufacturers
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harvesting companies (for roundwood and chip exports), and
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estimates provided by the Expert Group on Timber and Trade Statistics
Trade
Data on imports and exports are based on data obtained from overseas trade statistics on intra-EC trade and extra-EC trade produced by HM Revenue and Customs. Data on apparent consumption are derived as UK production plus imports less exports.
The data obtained from HM Revenue and Customs cover quantities (weights and volumes) and values of wood and wood products imported to and exported from the UK. Data are compiled for the following products:
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roundwood - woodfuel, industrial roundwood
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wood charcoal
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wood chips and particles
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wood residues
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sawnwood
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woodbased panels - veneer sheets, plywood, particleboard, fibreboard
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pulp - wood pulp, other pulp
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recovered paper, and
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paper and paperboard - graphic papers (including newsprint), sanitary and household papers, packaging materials, other paper and paperboard
Employment and businesses
Statistics on employment are obtained from:
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Annual Business Inquiry (ABI) (Office for National Statistics (ONS)) - an annual survey of UK businesses, and
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Forest Employment Survey - a Forestry Commission survey of forestry and primary wood processing businesses in Great Britain, last run in 1998/9
Numbers of businesses are estimated from:
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industry surveys (Sawmill Survey, Survey of Round Fencing Manufacturers) and industry associations (UK Forest Products Association, Wood Panel Industries Federation) - for businesses believed to be using UK roundwood, and
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business start-ups and closures: VAT registrations and de-registrations (Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform) - for VAT-registered businesses.
Timber prices
Annual figures for coniferous standing sales from Forestry Commission owned woodland broken down by size category, and for Forestry Commission sales of softwood logs, are obtained from administrative records held by the Forestry Commission. The figures are obtained twice yearly, covering the year to 31 March and the year to 30 September for standing sales and the six-month period to 31 March and to 30 September for logs.
Financial returns
Estimates of financial returns from commercial Sitka spruce plantations are compiled and published by Investment Property Databank Limited (IPD). The returns include changes in the value of forestry estates, as well as timber price changes.
Gross Value Added
Statistics on gross value added (GVA) are obtained from the Annual Business Inquiry (ABI) (Office for National Statistics (ONS)), an annual survey of UK businesses. The Annual Business Inquiry uses the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) to classify businesses to industries according to their main activity.
For more information see Sources section of Forestry Statistics.
Glossary
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Cement bonded particleboard
Sheet material manufactured under pressure, based on wood and other vegetable particles bound with hydraulic cement and possibly containing additives.
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Chipboard
(see Particleboard).
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FAO
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation, responsible for the Forest Resources Assessment and for compiling international statistics on production and trade of wood products.
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FC
Forestry Commission: the government department responsible for forestry matters in Great Britain. The responsibility for forestry is devolved to ministers in the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly, but the executive functions are exercised throughout Great Britain by the FC.
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Fibreboard
Panel material with thickness equal to or greater than 1.5mm, manufactured from lignocellulosic fibres with application of heat and/or pressure. The bond is derived either from the felting of the fibres and their inherent adhesive properties or from a synthetic binder added to the fibres.
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FS
Northern Ireland Forest Service (an agency of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development).
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Green tonne
Weight measurement of timber fresh felled before any natural or artificial drying has occurred.
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Hardwood
The wood of broadleaved trees, a term sometimes used for the broadleaved trees themselves.
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MDF (medium-density fibreboard)
Wood fibreboard made by a dry process in which the primary bond is derived from a bonding agent, and having a density usually exceeding 600 kg metres cubed.
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OSB (oriented strand board)
Multi-layered board made from strands of wood of a predetermined shape and thickness together with a binder. The strands in the external layers are aligned and parallel to the board length or width.
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Overbark
The volume of wood including the bark. Can be either standing volume or felled volume.
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Particleboard
Panel material manufactured under pressure and heat from particles of wood (wood [also chipboard] flakes, chips, shavings, sawdust) in particle form, with the addition of an adhesive.
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Plywood
Wood-based panel consisting of an assembly of layers bonded together with the direction of the grain in adjacent layers, usually at right angles. (Not made in the UK).
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Pulp
A fibrous material produced by mechanically or chemically reducing wood into their component parts from which pulp, paper and paperboard sheets are formed after proper slushing and treatment or used for dissolving purposes (dissolving pulp or chemical cellulose) to make rayon, plastics, and other synthetic products. Sometimes called wood pulp.
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Recovered
Either industrial process by-products (for example, offcuts or fines from a board manufacturing mill, furniture factory, joinery or construction) or from post-consumer waste wood (for example, pallets, construction waste) after the stage of recovery or reclamation for purposes of recycling.
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Roundwood
Logs and small branches (small roundwood).
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Sawlogs
Sawn timber - timber that has been cut into planks or boards from logs.
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Softwood
The wood of coniferous trees or conifers themselves.
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Standing volume
Measurement of quantity before trees are felled. Usually expressed as cubic metres overbark standing.
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UKFPA
United Kingdom Forest Products Association.
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Underbark
The volume of wood excluding the bark.
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UN ECE
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, responsible for compiling international statistics on production and trade of wood products for Europe, the Russian Federation and North America.
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Veneer
A thin layer of wood, produced by peeling or slicing, used for decorative purposes. Veneers are usually applied to less expensive or less attractive substitutes including solid timber, woodbased sheet materials.
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WRME
Wood Raw Material Equivalent - the volume of trees required to produce a wood product. Can be measured underbark or overbark.
Contact Details
For statistical enquiries about this topic, please contact:
Sheila Ward
Email: statistics@forestry.gsi.gov.uk
Telephone: +44 (0) 131 3146171
Economics & Statistics Forestry Commission Silvan House 231 Corstorphine Road Edinburgh EH12 7AT
