Wood procurement

Wood procurement in Sweden

Most of Holmen’s forests are located in northern Sweden, while its mills are in the southern and central parts of the country. The mills consequently largely source their wood through purchases from private forest owners in those parts of the country. In the past, almost all the wood from Holmen’s forests in northern Sweden was sold to local buyers. Holmen is also increasingly using this wood for its sites in central Sweden through logistic and exchange arrangements.

In 2011, Holmen’s Swedish facilities consumed 4.7 (4.4) million cubic metres of wood. Harvesting in Holmen’s own forests totalled 3.0 (2.5) million cubic metres, equivalent to around 60 per cent of the Group’s wood requirement.

Wood procurement in Estonia

Holmen imports small volumes (approximately 150 000 cubic metres) of wood, mainly from Estonia. Holmen’s wholly owned subsidiary Holmen Mets buys and transports wood to its own terminals there. Almost all the wood is bought from private forest owners. Most of it is delivered to Iggesund Mill. Smaller volumes also go to Hallsta Paper Mill and external buyers.

Holmen Mets is certified under the FSC^® standard for Controlled Wood and has
procedures and systems in place to trace all wood back to its origin. Holmen considers the systems for traceability now in use in Estonia to meet exacting requirements. The return of land confiscated after the Second World War has now been largely completed. There are consequently fewer forests now whose ownership is unclear, which makes it easier for the authorities to verify the origin of wood.

The state-owned forests are certified under FSC^®. This is equivalent to around half the total acreage of forest land in the country. The proportion of certified, privately owned forests is small.

Wood procurement in the UK

The paperboard mill in Workington uses around 300 000 cubic metres of spruce wood and sawmill chips annually. Most of the wood comes from state-owned forests, mainly in south-west Scotland and northern England. A small proportion is sourced from private forest owners. Holmen does not own any forests in the UK.

FSC Controlled Wood

The proportion of certified wood at the various sites varies with availability in the area. Holmen Skog’s chain-of-custody certification (FSC^® Controlled Wood) provides assurance that non-certified wood

• has not been harvested illegally or in contravention of the rights of indigenous peoples
• does not come from controversial sources
• has not been genetically modified and
• does not come from natural forests that have been converted into plantations.

Environmentally certified forests in Sweden 2011 

1. Of which dubble certified 7.5 million hectares.