canada

Sawn timber production 10% lower than last year

Recovery of production in British Columbia

Article by Philipp Matzku (adapted for holzkurier.com; translated by Eva Guzely) | 09.10.2020 - 13:41

With 7.9 million m³ in the first seven months, sawn timber production in British Columbia saw a marked increase compared to spring. In total, output is still 10% lower compared to the same period of last year.

From January to July, a total of 20.9 million m³ (13 billion bft) of sawn timber were produced in Canada according to the Western Wood Products Association (WWPA). In Q2, sawn timber production fell by 18% (8.5 million m³). In June and July, output reached 3 million m³ and was thus on last year’s level for two consecutive months.

In the first seven months, production in British Columbia saw an 18% decrease year on year (2019: 9.7 million m³). In Q2, the province’s sawn timber output was still 28% below that of 2019.

From January to July, machine utilization in Canadian sawmills fell by 5 percentage points year on year to 74%.