Head of Wood and Fiberboard Retailers’ Union, Esmaeil Elahian, says due to a recent government ban on logging, the domestic wood demand has to be met through imports. According to the official, Iran’s wood demand is mostly supplied from Russian beech trees, while coatings are imported from China. He noted that currently only chipboards and medium-density fiberboards are produced domestically, adding that 30-40% of the wood used in domestic manufacturing is supplied from the country’s forestry residues and the rest is imported from China. He expressed hope that with an increase in exploitation of tree waste and forestry residues in the future, the country will be able to meet all its demand domestically. Over the past years, most of Iran’s forests have been destroyed due to excessive logging. Esmaeili believes the ban imposed on logging by the government has been highly effective in saving the country’s forests.
