Timbergreetings!  May 24, 2002  page 5
While selling lump-sum may be the best way to sell stumpage in the traditional timber market, this method does not get the forest owner anywhere close to prices possible in the new value-added market.  You lose control in many ways and the end results are almost always very disappointing to the forest owner.

We are no longer working in the stumpage market,
and loggers are not timber buyers - we aren't selling trees or logs anymore. 
There is no incentive or opportunity for any crooked dealings in any stage of
the operation.  Every one is treated fairly and paid for their work.


A forestry cooperative should be financed with the wealth of timber growing on the member's lands.  Once the wood starts flowing through the system, it quickly    becomes a sustainable business.  If you sell value-added products direct to        consumers, there is plenty of cash to pay the workers and get through bad weather.  The retail market is not fluctuating like the wholesale commodity market,          producing more  even cash flow.  This value-added marketplace is a much friendlier place for the forest owner to work in!!

"Is it any wonder that Davis says he is happiest out in the woods running a chain saw?  Still when it comes right down to it, neither Davis nor many others actually give up their businesses to go back to a simpler life.  Many, in fact, do the opposite, buying more equipment and getting deeper into debt."

The traditional timber industry pressures a logger to; minimize what they pay the forest owner, get their own insurance, take their own risks, buy expensive & heavy equipment to produce greater volume, work even when soil conditions are wet, work even when insect & disease risks are high, and be totally dependent on the current local market conditions.

The Sustainable Forestry Cooperative is designed to; maximize the payment to the forest owner (by eliminating all the brokers and middlemen), provide steady work & pay the logger well for excellent quality work, cover the workers with full        insurance & benefits, provide a variety of year round work experience, provide modern & appropriate sized equipment fitted to the exact need on the member's land, perform work when logging conditions minimize damage to the forest          resource, encourage responsible timber management from forest to finished floor, and demonstrate community based resource management for all to see.

Forest Owners - the traditional timber industry is not going to change. 
You have to enter this new marketplace to attain these benefits.
(and don't think you can keep even one foot in the traditional system -
you'll just get dragged right back in - this new market is separate!!)


We know this is possible - we do it every day here at Timbergreen Farm.  Other forest owners can choose to follow this working example.  There are some really good loggers out there wanting to work with you, and they can't wait to begin!

Birky                                                                Back
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