The Talking Timber 2025 event held by Teagasc in Sligo today (Tuesday, April 15) was opened by Minister of State for forestry and farm safety, Michael Healy-Rae.

It was among his first public addresses in the role and he took the opportunity to set out his vision for the forestry sector in a quite forthright manner.

Teagasc’s annual timber marketing event placed a particular focus on the post-storm harvesting response.

The event, held in association with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and Forest Industries Ireland, addressed the harvest and marketing of timber in the aftermath of recent storms.

Talking Timber gives forest owners an opportunity to engage with timber buyers, harvesting contractors and registered foresters.

Storms such as Darragh and Éowyn pose serious logistical, planning and financial challenges for forest owners, but Teagasc said they can also offer opportunities for forest regeneration and management if the impact is handled carefully.

Minister Healy-Rae's overall message was that under his stewardship, DAFM will need to change its attitude, a message he repeated and firmly nailed to his mast.

The first action he wants to take is to ensure that all plantations are certified, noting that lumber mills are obliged to take 70% of their timber from certified sources.

Certification will also add value to the timber and he therefore considers it a "no brainer" that forest owners are obliged to manage their plantations through this instrument, rather than leave their fate to chance.

The minister also suggested that some sort of restitution scheme may well be put in place following the winter storms, but the full extent of the  damage needs to be ascertained before any decisions can be made.

The minister of state then moved to the ministry itself and while politely congratulating the staff on their work, it was made quite clear that things need to change.

His major point made to the DAFM, and representatives of its senior management who attended the timber event, was that it is to consider itself as being there to help growers and not hinder them.

Procedures are to be streamlined and those working at ground level are to be given more latitude in decision making rather than waiting for an answer from Dublin, Healy-Rae stressed.

It was made clear that rules, regulations and governance were vitally important, but that he expected to see more common sense also being exercised.

When questioned as to whether this might run contrary to the quest for 100% certification, Minister Healy-Rae stated his belief in the importance of certification as the basis for a healthy industry.

Attendees were left in no doubt that the minster holds strong convictions when it comes to the future of forestry in Ireland and he is determined to see the sector prosper.