Forest product

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Wood cut from Victorian Mountain Ash
Wood cut from Victorian Mountain Ash

A forest product is any material derived from a forest for commercial use, such as lumber, paper, or forage for livestock. Wood, by far the dominant commercial forest product, is used for many industrial purposes, such as the finished structural materials used for the construction of buildings, or as a raw material, in the form of wood pulp, that is used in the production of paper. All other non-wood products derived from forest resources, comprising a broad variety of other forest products, are collectively described as non-timber forest products.

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[edit] Lumber, paper, and other tree products

For commercial purposes, timber is harvested from forests and converted at wood mills into lumber, paper products, wood fuel or other forest products.

[edit] Non-timber forest products

Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) include medicinal herbs, fungi, edible fruits and nuts, and other natural products. Perceived as socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable, non-timber forest products represent alternatives to timber-based forest management strategies.

Broad categories of non-timber forest products include floral greens, Christmas greens, ornamentals and craft materials, wild edibles, medicinals, ceremonials/culturals,and native plants.

Old growth forests are prized for harboring a wide diversity of non-timber forest products; e.g., discovery of new species useful as forest products often adding an unknown value to some forests.

[edit] Resource pressures

Many forest management policies have been implemented that impact forest product economics, including forest access restrictions, harvesting fees, and harvest limits. Deforestation, global warming and other environmental concerns have increasingly affected the availability and sustainability of forest products, as well as the economies of regions dependent upon forestry around the world. In recent years, the idea of sustainable forestry, which aims to preserve crop yields without causing irreversible damage to ecosystem health, has changed the relationship between environmentalists and the forest products industry. Stakeholders in the forest products industry include government departments, commercial enterprises, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), policy-makers and analysts, private concerns and international organizations.

[edit] See also