The following charts indicate which of "the selected countries" are likely to supply the United Kingdom with the greatest quantity of each of the selected products. They implicitly suggest priorities for scrutiny by Competent Authorities and Monitoring Organisations.
Information about the trade in wood-based products of a number of those countries is available via the Home Page of this website
"The selected countries" comprise all countries other than Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, the USA and all EU member states.
Timber sector products are defined in this and related documents as all products classified in the UN Harmonised System under the following headings: 4403 to 4421 inclusive, 940161, 940169, 94019030, 940330, 940340, 940350, 940360, and 94039030.
Paper sector products are defined in this and related documents as all products classified in the UN Harmonised System under the following headings: 44012, 44013, 4701 to 4705 inclusive, and 48.
The source on which statistics for the imports of EU member states is Eurostat. Estimates of roundwood equivalent ("RWE") volume have been derived from source data as indicated in http://www.globaltimber.org.uk/RWEvolume.htm
Imports
of Timber and Paper sector products
(2010, estimated roundwood equivalent ("RWE") volume)
Imports of Timber and Paper sector products (2010, import value)
Trend in imports of wood-based products from the selected countries (2000-2010)
Imports of specific wood-based products from selected countries (2010):
All
countries, Timber Sector and Paper Sector (RWE volume)
Congo
Basin, Eastern Europe and West Africa (not shown) very small relative
to the total from High Risk countries.
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All
countries, Timber Sector and Paper Sector (import value)
China
as large as the largest EU supplier and much larger than anywhere
outside the EU. Consequently, prospective Monitoring Organisations
should not be deemed eligible unless they demonstrate a thorough understanding
of legality in chains of supply to and from China.
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Trend
in imports of wood-based products from the selected countries (2000-2010)
China
has become very significant since about 2004. Malaysia largely displaced
Indonesia in the supply of plywood during the first half of last decade.
China seems to have displaced Brazil as a supplier of plywood. Imports
of sawn wood (predominantly from Russia) declined steeply at the end
of last decade. Volume of logs very small relative to total.
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Imports
of logs from the selected countries
Very
small volumes.
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Imports
of sawn wood from the selected countries
Dominated
by Russia. Small but nevertheless significant quantities from several
other countries.
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Imports
of veneer from the selected countries
Very
small volumes.
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Imports
of plywood from the selected countries
Volume
from China similar to sum of volumes from the other selected countries.
Imports
from China require particular scrutiny given the likelihood that (1)
their outer ply derives
from illegal timber imported into China, (2) their core derives from
trees grown in China with a supply chain associated with illegality,
(3) fraud, etc. Most supplies from Malaysia now derive from trees
grown in Peninsular Malaysia in compliance with the MTCC scheme.
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Imports
of other panels from the selected countries
Very
small quantities. Supplies
of larger quantities of other products are more likely to include
Illegal Timber.
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Imports
of mouldings & joinery from the selected
countries
Supplied
primarily from China. Particularly high levels of due diligence required
in all cases, except those from Peninsular Malaysia and South Africa
- especially supplies from China (most of which probably derive from
Illegal Timber imported into China).
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Imports
of wooden furniture from the selected
countries
Predominantly
from China - and therefore requiring particularly high levels of scrutiny
(as indicated at Plywood above). Levels of scrutiny for supplies from
the other countries depends particularly on the species used (rubberwood
is low risk).
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Imports
of other Timber Sector products from
the selected countries
Predominantly
China (as wooden picture frames, ornaments, kitchenware, etc).
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Imports
of wood chips & residues from the selected
countries
Very
small quantities.
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Imports
of wood-based pulp from the selected
countries
Predominantly
from Brazil.
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Imports
of paper from the selected countries
Primarily
from China and Brazil.Supplies from China might derive partly from
Indonesian pulp - and therefore warrant particular scrutiny.
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