The forestry sector—landowners, logging companies and sawmills—have lost an estimated $1.1 billion in 2020. Devastating wildfires and Hurricane Laura have played a part, but the COVID-19 pandemic has also contributed to significant losses. If workers are required to stay home, then no trees will be felled or logs sawed into lumber.
These losses have been exacerbated and amplified because of a longstanding trade war that has severely curbed the sale of U.S. forestry products to foreign markets, particularly China.
Andrew Muhammad, Blasingame Chair of Excellence in Agricultural Policy, is an expert in international agricultural trade, trade policy and global food demand. He recently wrote about the challenges facing the American timber industry for The Conversation.
Read the full article on The Conversation’s website.
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