{"id":32923,"date":"2026-02-25T01:33:52","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T15:33:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/?p=32923"},"modified":"2026-02-25T08:01:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T22:01:26","slug":"solomon-islands-to-use-pefc-to-break-into-global-sawn-timber-markets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/solomon-islands-to-use-pefc-to-break-into-global-sawn-timber-markets\/","title":{"rendered":"Solomon Islands to Use PEFC to Break into Global Sawn\u2011Timber Markets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The Solomon Islands wants to sell controlled-source tropical timber to the world, with the Solomon Islands Timber Processors and Exporters Association (SITPEA), a body that represents up to 17 small timber processors, amongst the first to receive PEFC chain-of-custody certification for its sawn timber.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, Wood Central spoke to Malcolm Scott, the long-time chair of the New Zealand Tropical Timber Importers Group (NZTTIG), who has been working closely with local timber processors and exporters for more than a decade to help meet the PEFC controlled-source criteria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cNZITTG has, since 2015, been pushing hard to source third-party legally verified timber products from the Solomons,\u201d Scott said, \u201cso it was with great relief that PEFC terms and conditions have now been met by three exporters\u2026with another three or four likely to join later this year or next.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"youtube-embed\" data-video_id=\"uZ-dG8z8KT4\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Responsible Timber from the Solomon Islands\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uZ-dG8z8KT4?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Australian researchers, through the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, have been working for a number of years to establish a supply chain for responsible timber on the islands. Footage courtesy of University of Adelaide &#8211; Business Law Economics.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Simon Dorries, CEO of Responsible Wood (PEFC\u2019s national governing body in Australia), the milestone is a &#8220;monumental\u201d achievement for the development of sustainable forest management and timber legality not only in the Solomon Islands but across the wider Pacific region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhilst the Solomons do not have a sustainable forest management standard (yet), the Soil Association (the independent certification body) have conducted due diligence on the sites, allowing the products to be sold as PEFC-controlled source,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cImportantly, PEFC controlled source is recognised under the Australian Illegal Logging Prohibition Regulation and the New Zealand Legal Harvest Assurance (LHA) system,\u201d Dorries stressed, which in effect means that the Solomons now have a clear pathway into the Australian, NZ and global markets too. \u201cIn addition to SITPEA, a group scheme that captures small-sized timber companies in the Solomon supply chain, Top Timber is a medium-sized processor and exporter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Timber from Solomon Islands can now carry a PEFC controlled source. And while sawn timber makes up perhaps 5% of the value of log exports, that could soon change with processors looking to sell higher-value products into global markets. Photos courtesy of Malcom Scott, NZITTG. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HNzAIzRhtS\">pic.twitter.com\/HNzAIzRhtS<\/a><\/p>&mdash; WoodCentralAu (@WoodCentralAU1) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WoodCentralAU1\/status\/2026318096215294225?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 24, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>It comes as Wood Central last year reported on the growing momentum for certification not only in the Solomon Islands but also across the wider Pacific. \u201cSawn timber is an important source of income and jobs for Solomon Islanders, and SITPEA is positioning Solomon Islands as a trusted source of certified, high-value timber,\u201d according to Rod Hilton, Australian High Commissioner for the Solomon Islands, with PEFC (and\/or FSC) certification instrumental in gaining access to Australia, New Zealand as well as into Asia, Europe and America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>\u201cCertification isn\u2019t just about meeting market standards \u2013 it\u2019s about building trust, improving livelihoods, and protecting our forests,\u201d according to Adam Bartlett, SITPEA Chair, who has worked with the NZITTG, Responsible Wood, Pharma Plus and PEFC International to grow chain of custody scheme in the region. \u201cWe are committed to expanding timber certification and strengthening our industry practices.\u201d<\/p><cite>Forestry is a major export industry for the Solomon Islands <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timbertradeportal.com\/en\/solomon-islands\/147\/timber-sector?utm_source=copilot.com\">with the Timber Trade Portal reporting that up to 65% of the Islands export revenue was tied to forest products.<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The push for certification comes amid rising Chinese engagement in the Solomon Islands\u2019 forestry sector, which accounted for more than 87% of the Solomon Islands&#8217; log trade in 2016. Already, China is using timber and bamboo diplomacy to deepen its economic and strategic ties with the Pacific nation, which in July saw eleven Solomon Islands forestry officers\u2014including Chief Forester Christina Gabuvai\u2014return from a two-month intensive training program in China aimed at strengthening the country&#8217;s downstream timber processing capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIn Solomon Islands, forest coverage is around 90%, and most of the country\u2019s revenue comes from logging, with limited development of downstream products,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chinadaily.com.cn\/a\/202508\/11\/WS68993ec2a310724b60020db8.html\"><em>Gabuvai told&nbsp;China Daily.<\/em><\/a> \u201cI joined this seminar because the government of Solomon Islands recognised the importance of this training. Here, I\u2019ve gained new ideas and skills, including how to transform timber into value-added products.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>For more information about timber opportunities in the Pacific, a $1 billion-plus market for tropical timber, <a href=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/could-pan-pacific-forest-standard-end-asia-pacific-illegal-logging\/\"><em>click here for Wood Central\u2019s special feature from October 2023.<\/em><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Solomon Islands wants to sell controlled-source tropical timber to the world, with the Solomon Islands Timber Processors and Exporters Association (SITPEA), a body that represents up to 17 small timber processors, amongst the first to receive PEFC chain-of-custody certification for its sawn timber. Today, Wood Central spoke to Malcolm Scott, the long-time chair of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":32924,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":false,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"default","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"default","_google_business_share_type":"default","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[50,2,32,81,45,44,31],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[70],"class_list":{"0":"post-32923","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-australia","8":"category-featured","9":"category-global-news","10":"category-oceania","11":"category-sustainability","12":"category-sustainable-forest-management","13":"category-top-stories"},"authors":[{"term_id":70,"user_id":2,"is_guest":0,"slug":"jason","display_name":"Jason Ross","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/J-Ross-headshot.jpeg","url2x":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/J-Ross-headshot.jpeg"},"0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32923","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32923"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32923\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":32932,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32923\/revisions\/32932"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32924"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32923"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32923"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32923"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=32923"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}