Russ Cameron, president of the Independent Wood Processors Association of BC, told The Working Forest on April 17 that BC’s value added wood processors are being “decimated” by big lumber.
In an email to Madison’s Thursday, Cameron provided context, saying: there is no more growth for commodity wood products but lots of opportunity for value added wood products. Unfortunately we have lost half of BC’s value added wood processors due to consolidation of the non-competitive harvest into the hands of a few mega companies and a Canadian imposed tax for employing British Columbians to add value to BC grown wood in BC.
“It’s ironic that after the Canadian companies received $5-billion in softwood lumber refunds in 2006 they began their US buying spree,” says Cameron to the The Working Forest. “There’s no more growth for commodity wood products in the Interior, and acquisition seems to be the only solution for these big producers.”
