The Initiative Pro Massivholz (IPM) is currently complaining about shortages of hardwood. Oak wood in particular has been difficult to obtain in recent months. This has also made the production processes for solid wood furniture more difficult. The IPM is highly critical of the export of wood to distant countries: "The trees are felled in this country, shipped to China as roundwood, processed there and then partly shipped back to Europe in the form of glulam panels, furniture or parquet flooring," said Hanhardt, Managing Director of Hartmann Möbelwerke GmbH.
Because this practice is contrary to climate protection due to the high CO2 emissions during shipping, and because the subsidization of hardwood imports by the Chinese state leads to a distortion of competition, the IPM is in favor of more regional processing of hardwood. At the EU level, it also calls for a quota on hardwood exports.
IPM is also appealing to the German government to support sustainable forest use and greater use of regional resources. Because it fears set-asides and logging restrictions in German forests: "The raw material wood is becoming increasingly scarce in this way, and the set-asides are virtually cutting off our manufacturers from their crucial raw material," says IPM Managing Director Andreas Ruf.
Source: IPM/moebelindustrie.de
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