Talking Timber 2023

Talking Timber, Teagasc’s popular conifer timber marketing event is taking place today, Tuesday, 23 May in Athlone. This year’s theme "Planning towards Sustainable Timber Production" explores opportunities and challenges how forest owners can adapt their management and strategic planning to best sustainably grow, harvest and ultimately sell timber.

Talking Timber 2023

The Talking Timber event provides forest owners with the opportunity to ask the right questions of the right people to gain a better understanding of how the process of selling timber works, what the markets are looking for, and what they can do to achieve the best economic and environmental outcomes.

Nuala NiFhlatharta, Head of the Teagasc Forestry Development Department provides some important background, “the Central Statistics Office estimates that in 2021, over four million cubic metres of roundwood, excluding firewood, was removed from forests for processing in the Republic of Ireland. This is a 31% increase compared to 2015. Much of this increase came from the private sector with a 35% increase in 2021 compared to 2020! 

She added; “the CSO also indicates that privately owned forests will steadily increase their share of the total harvest of roundwood in the Republic of Ireland from 35% in 2021 to 61% in 2040. It is therefore really important that forest owners are in a position to maximise their returns through the successful planning and sale of their timber.”

The event will include an outdoor display of log and timber products. This is presented by Forest Industries Ireland. This is followed by an indoor session including a Question & Answer session.

Forest owners will also have a premium opportunity to make direct contact with a wide range of forest companies and state organisations offering valuable networking, information exchange and "doing business" opportunities. 

Noel Kennedy, Forestry Development Officer with Teagasc, who is organising this year’s Talking Timber event, explains what participants can expect today; “this Talking Timber event offers forest owners with timber to sell a great opportunity to hear about current timber markets, view harvested logs and timber products and network with a wide range of forest industry businesses.”

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