Presentation
An overview on
non-wood forest products development
in Europe
by
Sven Walter
FAO NWFP Programme
COFORD Seminar
„Growing markets for non-wood forest products“
Tullamore, Co Offaly, 15 April 2005
Structure of Presentation
1. Introduction
2. NWFP in Europe – facts and figures
3. NWFP in Europe – outlook
4. Forest services
5. Current issues
6. Conclusions
1. Introduction
FAO’s Mandate
• to raise levels of nutrition and standards of living,
• to improve agricultural productivity, and
• to better the condition of rural populations.
1. Introduction
Mission of the NWFP Programme
To improve the sustainable utilization of Non-Wood
Forest Products in order to contribute
• to the wise management of the world's forests,
• to conserve their biodiversity, and
• to improve income-generation and food security.
1. Introduction
Key areas of the NWFP Programme
• Improving methodologies
• Supporting institutional capacity
• Strengthening global networking
• Promoting best practices
1. Introduction
What are non-wood forest products?
NWFP consist of goods of biological origin
other than wood, derived from forests,
other wooded land and trees outside forests.
1. Introduction
Honey
Resins
Foliage
Christmas trees
Nuts
Birch sap
Cork
Bushmeat
Fodder
Medicinal plants
Fruits and berries
Ants’ eggs
Mushrooms
What are the main European non-wood forest products?
1. Introduction
NWFP statistics – Caution!
• No recognized standard classification
• Incomplete national/regional coverage
• Problems of comparability
• Problems to estimate production/consumption trends
• Problems of aggregation
• Interdisciplinary topic
1. Introduction
Key literature
Temperate and Boreal Forest
Resource Assessment, 2000
Forest Resource
Assessment, 2001
1. Introduction
Key literature
State of European Forests, 2003
European Forest Sector Outlook Study, 2005
1. Introduction
Key literature
Other specialized literature
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
Honey
Resins
Foliage
Christmas trees
Nuts
Birch sap
Cork
Bushmeat
Fodder
Medicinal plants
Fruits and berries
Ants’ eggs
Mushrooms
What are the main European non-wood forest products?
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.1 Nuts
Annual value: 3 billion EUR; 2 Mio t (2000)
A street vendor selling fresh roasted
chestnuts, Piazza di Spagna, Rome, Italy.
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.1 Nuts
Annual value: 3 billion EUR; 2 Mio t (2000)
Main products:
Regional trends:
• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Chestnuts
• Hazelnuts
• Western Europe
• Eastern Europe
• CIS
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.2 Game meat and pelts
Annual value: 466 million EUR (large underestimation)
• Meat of all hunted birds and mammals
• Pelt: Skin of fur
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.2 Game meat and pelts
Annual value: 466 million EUR (large underestimation)
• Meat of all hunted birds and mammals
• Pelt: Skin of fur
Issues:
• CIS: 1% of value but 59% of game and 99% of pelts harvested
• Significant income to private landowners and public agencies
• Unclear trends
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.3 Christmas trees
Annual value: 444 million EUR, 43 million trees/yr (1990s)
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.3 Christmas trees
Annual value: 444 million EUR, 43 million trees/yr (1990s)
• Major seasonal and significant export crop (e.g.
Denmark)
• Forest or horticulture product?
• Trend unclear: Increased production in some
countries, e.g. Ireland
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.4 Fruits and berries
Annual value: 349 million EUR, 211 000t (1990s)
Clusters of bright red fruits
of the European mountain
ash (Sorbus aucuparia).
These berry-like fruits can
be used for a wide variety of
purposes.
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.4 Fruits and berries
Annual value: 349 million EUR, 211 000t (1990s)
• Main producers: Scandinavia, Albania, Czech
Republic
• Supply >> demand
Western Europe:
Eastern Europe:
• Mainly subsistence use
• Commercial collection
• ?
•
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.5 Fungi and truffles
Annual value: 262 million EUR, 77 000t (1990s)
Fresh porcini being prepared for
cooking and preservation in brine,
prior to being sold.
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.5 Fungi and truffles
Annual value: 262 million EUR, 77 000t (1990s)
• Important fungi: Matsutake, chanterelles, boletes,
morels
Regional disparity:
• Western Europe: 68% of value and 40% of production
• Eastern Europe: 26% of value and 48% of production
• Strong demand for wild fungi (subsistence & commerce ↑)
• Increased competition from cultivated fungi/truffles
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.6 Cork
Annual value: 209 million EUR, 300 000t (2000)
Harvesting cork on a large
Quercus suber tree in Portugal.
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.6 Cork
Annual value: 209 million EUR, 300 000t (2000)
• Bottle stoppers, floor covers, construction material,
etc.
Producing countries:
Portugal (62%), Italy (6%)
Spain (30%), France (2%)
• Issues: non-wood substitutes, product quality
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.7 Medicinal plants
Annual value: 118 million EUR, 43 000t (1990s)
A western yew, Taxus brevifolia, is the prime
source of the anti-cancer drug taxol.
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.7 Medicinal plants
Annual value: 118 million EUR, 43 000t (1990s)
• World market: Europe main import market (120 000t/yr)
• 2 000 European species used
• Wild gathering > cultivation (species/volume)
Trend:
• Western Europe
• Eastern Europe
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.7 Medicinal plants
Issues:
• Conservation (341 medicinal plants fully/partially protected)
• Substitution (e.g. Pacific yew/taxol)
• Cultivation (quality, price, demand – supply)
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.8 Decorative foliage
Annual value: 49 million EUR, 45 000t (1990s)
Juniperus procumbens bonsai in
the shakan style (Photo taken at
the Bonsai Nursery, Denver,
Colorado).
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.8 Decorative foliage
Annual value: 49 million EUR, 45 000t (1990s)
• Floral industry (tree branches, boughs, live plans,
mosses, lichen)
• USA/North West Province: ¼ of decorative foliage
exported to Europe
• Increased cultivation of most popular species
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.9 Honey from forests
Annual value: 34 million EUR, 31 000t (1990s)
Honey produced from the flowers of
black locust, Robinia pseudoacacia. In
Italy it is marked as Acacia honey.
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.9 Honey from forests
Annual value: 34 million EUR, 31 000t (1990s)
• How much honey comes from the forest?
→ Total annual honey production in Europe:
518 million EUR, 350 000 t
• Trend: Increasing demand
2. NWFP in Europe – facts & figures
2.10 Other NWFP
• Resins
• Eucalyptus oils
• Fodder/forage
• Bark
• Birch sap
3. NWFP in Europe – outlook
1. Collection of NWFP as recreational activity
• ↑ recreation → ↑ NWFP collection
• e.g. fruits, berries, fungi, medicinal plants
• Increase in Western Europe
2. Commercial collection of NWFP
• Decrease in Western Europe, increase in Eastern
Europe
• More intensive management systems (truffles, cork,
medicinal plans, foliage)
3. NWFP in Europe – outlook
3. Edible NWFP and medicinal plants
• Western Europe: Increasing demand for natural
products
• Eastern Europe: NWFP perceived as inferior or
high value products??
4. Cork
• Stable and moderate growth
• Product must remain price competitive and reliable
5. Decorative foliage
• Strong demand and future growth in Western Europe
3. NWFP in Europe – outlook
6. Christmas trees
• Demand driven by population numbers
• Luxury item: innovative marketing and advertising
required
3. NWFP in Europe – outlook
Total annual value of NWFP in Europe in the mid1990s (in EUR million at 2000 prices and exchange
rates)
Global
Western
Europe
Eastern
Europe
CIS
NWFP
4 921
3 126
1 654
139
Wood
15 963
9 886
2 895
3 217
NWFP/
Wood
24%
24%
37%
Source: FAO/UNECE. 2005. European Forest Sector Outlook Study
4%
4. Forest Services
a) Recreation
↑
b) Biodiversity conservation
↑
c) Mitigation of climate change
↑
d) Protection of soil and water
e) Cultural and spiritual aspects
5. Current issues
a) Access to forest resources
b) Political and economic reforms in Eastern Europe
and CIS
c) Substitution
d) Product quality
e) Certification
f) Statistical data
g) …
6. Conclusions
Non-wood forest products
development in Europe
Grading of dried bay leaves (Laurus nobilis) in Turkey
FAO NWFP Programme
FAO
Forest Products and Economics Division
Forest Products Service
Viale delle Terme di Caracalla
00100 Rome, Italy
Fax: +39-06-570-55618
Email: non-wood-news@fao.org
Homepage
http://www.fao.org/forestry/FOP/FOPW/NWFP/nwfp-e.stm
Sven Walter
Tel: +39-06-570-53853, Email: Sven.Walter@fao.org
FAO - Departments
FO
Forestry
GI General Affairs and Information
SD
Sustainable Development
TC
Technical Cooperation