28 | Sector Focus: British Timber
SUMMARY
■ The fencing season was strong this year
■Prices for British-grown sawn timber rose in Q1 but then stabilised
■Forestry and Land Scotland has opened a new glasshouse and growing facility at Newton Tree Nursery
■Gordon Timber is looking to grow production by 20% over the next two years
STEADY AS SHE GOES
Some stability has returned to the market for British-grown timber and sawmill investments are continuing at pace. Sally Spencer reports
For British sawmills the year thus far could probably be summed up as “better than 2024 but not quite as strong as the signs earlier in the year were leading us to believe”. That’s the verdict on the market for British- grown timber from Scott Gordon, executive director at Gordon Timber and it’s a view shared by others in the sector. “Demand for British-grown timber is
steady,” said James Brennan, head of marketing at BSW Group. “And what we have seen this year is a return to the seasonal peaks and quieter periods that were more the norm in the pre-Covid years – so we saw demand spike for fencing and landscaping going into the Easter period and then now going into
the second half of the year demand moved to more construction products. It’s encouraging because it suggests some sense of normality and stability has returned to the market.” Gordon Timber also enjoyed a strong fencing season and was hopeful that there may be a kick in demand at the end of the traditional fencing period thanks to the recent storms (Floris in particular).
It’s a similar story at James Jones & Sons where demand for British-grown timber was “reasonably strong for the first six months of the year”.
“The fencing season started early with
the dry, warm spring weather,” said Eddie Balfour, joint managing director. “However,
it appears that this may result in the season coming to an end rather abruptly. July was a disappointing month for fencing. Once the holiday season has ended, we can judge how demand will track for the rest of the year.” While fencing demand may have been a very welcome fillip for British sawmills, it’s fair to say that neither of the other major strings to their collective bow – pallet and construction timber – are romping away, reflecting the sluggish economy. Prices for British-grown sawn timber rose by 5-7% in Q1, raising sawmillers’ hopes that this was the start of a much-needed upward trajectory, but they levelled out and have stabilised as the year has progressed.
Above: This year BSW has invested £6m in the harvesting fleet TTJ | September/October 2025 |
www.ttjonline.com
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