Forestry & Wood Processing
The forestry and woodprocessing sectors are based on plantations of radiata pine
Facts
The forestry and wood processing sector is Northland's third-biggest contributor to the regional economy. Over 2500 people are employed in these industries.
Forest ownership is diverse and ranges from large corporate forestry companies to individual woodlot owners.
Radiata Pine

The sector is based around large, radiata pine forests planted in Northland since the 1960s with almost half of the Northland plantation estate in the Far North district.
Radiata pine is a general-purpose wood suitable for a wide range of end uses including structural timber, packaging, plywood and veneer, furniture, joinery, posts and poles, reconstituted panel products, and pulp and paper.
Currently about 20% of Northland's harvest is processed within the region.
Advantages
Key advantages that Northland enjoys are; the high basic density of Northland wood, a large volume of uncommitted wood available for processing, availability of labour, an established core of support trades eg: engineering, and a cohesive group of competitive but supportive industry representatives that meet regularly to address challenges these industries face.
The deep water port, NorthPort, at Marsden Point, Whangarei handles large volumes of timber exports and provides an advantage to the region.
Challenges
Some of the challenges facing the industry include foreign exchange rates; the availability of trained, skilled employees; roading infrastructure; the security and cost of energy; resource consent processes and trade barriers (both tariff and non-tariff).
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