A set of Teagasc Timber marketing factsheets aimed at providing further supports to forest owners who are selling timber have been launched.

The new factsheets were presented to the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) with special responsibility for forestry, farm safety and horticulture, Michael Healy-Rae at this year’s Teagasc Talking Timber event, held recently in Sligo.  

For many forestry owners, selling timber is a new experience. Unlike the familiarity of selling other farm products, most forest owners are unsure of the potential products from their forests, the likely buyers and how to carry out a timber sale with confidence.

In light of recent storms, many forest owners are now selling timber sooner than they expected, and Teagasc said that they many need help to navigate the timber harvesting and marketing process.  

When a timber harvest occurs, many different products can be produced and these may be sold to different buyers.

Therefore, Teagasc has stated that care must be taken that at each point in the sale, adequate measuring, recording, supervision is done from before the harvest right up to the point where timber is delivered to its market destination and is paid for.  

These Teagasc Factsheets cover the following important areas;  

Timber security
Organising a timber sales contract;
Timber products from conifer forests;
Payment schedules for timber sales;
Timber stack measurement;
The role of timber harvester heads in recording a harvest;
Timber sales dispatch systems;
Selling timber - weight versus volume  

Acting head of the Teagasc Forestry Development Department, Tom Houlihan said; “It is important that owners are directly involved in selling timber from their forests, even if they have a forester involved in the process.

"From understanding what should be in a timber sales contract, to simple measures they can carry out to supervise a sale, for example measuring a stack of timber or taking steps to ensure their timber is secure from harvest to weighbridge; these factsheets outline these important tools in an easy-to-follow format.”  

Teagasc forestry communications specialist, Frances McHugh added: “We hope that these factsheets will help build confidence among forest owners when selling their timber.

"The common message throughout the eight factsheets is that information gathering during a timber sale is key to maintaining control of the process until timber reaches its destination and the sale is complete”.  

The factsheets are available on the Teagasc website or in hard copy from local forestry advisors.