A Catalyst for Change - The Mosaic Forest Register
The Mosaic Forest Register is a project we’ve been working on for the past 6 months. Simply put, it’s a database of interesting forests, acting as a cohesive inventory for the local sawmillers nationwide. It pulls together information on thousands of privately owned forests into an easy, useful format. We created it as the first step in creating a thriving market for ‘special purpose’ timber species. These are high-value trees such as Redwoods, Oaks, certain Eucalypts, and Cypresses, which each have significant value when they make their way to the right home. Clearly there’s a fair distance between creating a voluntary inventory, and breathing life and scale into a timber market, but in this blog I’ll talk through what that journey is going to look like. The benefits are immense, but in order to see the full potential of this solution and be as excited about it as we are, its important to understand the context of the problem.
We settled on the name Mosaic Aotearoa because it perfectly describes our vision for the rural landscape. We know that a resilient and productive farm (or forest) is a diverse one, where each hectare has the right thing being grown on it. What is the right thing? It depends who you ask, but to us it’s something that enhances the environment and creates value for the long term. Farmers know this well, it’s why we have dairy and cropping on the flats, sheep and beef on the hills, and a range of other uses in between. Our specialty is trees, and our vision is to see a range of interesting, high-value tree species planted on sites that make sense.
Forestry integrated into productive farms isn’t a new thing. Organisations such as the New Zealand Farm Forestry Association (NZFFA) have been supporting farmers to grow trees for over 60 years. Their members share knowledge, resources and enthusiasm for growing trees, and it’s a community that we feel lucky to be a part of. The government is on board too, with Te Uru Rakau - New Zealand Forest Service actively supporting afforestation of a diverse range of trees. It’s an exciting time, but it’s not without its challenges.
The environmental case for this approach to the landscape is easy. Trees in the right place stabilise the land, create shelter and shade, moderate water flow in floods and reduce the effects of drought. Sites inhabited by forests go relatively undisturbed until harvest, and generally host increased biodiversity, especially when they’re grown with this in mind. The financial case is pretty good too, but like any long-term investment, it requires confidence in the outcome. Carbon credits have proven a huge opportunity for landowners, and often go a long way in helping fund afforestation, however the market for high-value timber alternatives to pine has been harder to demonstrate. We know there is incredible timber value being grown, but the market is fragmented and not immediately easy to access. Currently, a landowner planting an alternative species to pine needs to have a lot of faith in an eventual market for their trees.
Prior to starting Mosaic Aotearoa, Gerry and I spent a combined 15 years marketing logs to the domestic market. We’ve dealt with over 30 sawmills of different scales, and seen the challenge from their end. Large-scale sawmills need a consistent supply and for this reason they are businesses based around radiata pine forest. There’s no shortage of pine, and they can secure multi-year supply agreements from large-scale growers. The milling sector for other species doesn’t have the luxury of consistency, or even a supply forecast. For this reason they tend to be smaller and more agile, cutting and marketing logs as they become available. The timber generally sells for a significantly higher value than pine.
The simple facts that inspired us to create this resource are
There are alternative species to pine that thrive here, and a large resource of them is growing already.
There are sawmills willing to pay good money for these logs.
Those sawmills don’t have consistent supply or a view of future supply.
We created the Mosaic Forest Register to invigorate the market for high-value timber species
The forest register is a resource that benefits both the local timber market and the forest grower, by facilitating communication years before trees are harvested. The details of forests in the register are aggregated into regional wood availability forecasts, split by species and age. At a high level, sawmills can use this information to plan and smooth their supply. They can also reach out to forest owners and secure supply agreements years in advance, giving security to both the forest owner and themselves. By introducing this information at the local sawmill level, we can bring confidence and consistency to the whole supply chain.
The following sequence of events will unfold
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Sawmills that target high-value species can stabilise their supply, securing volume years before it’s due to be harvested. They can grow their operations with confidence.
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The end-user market of architects, builders and furniture makers can plan beautiful, locally grown timber into their designs and plans, lifting the demand and value of these timbers.
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Forest growers, or those thinking about becoming one, benefit from this increased demand, and receive the best value for their logs.
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With market confidence, diverse species become a safer investment and can be planted on the sites that best suit them.
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Confidence is contagious. The Mosaic Forest Register is the first domino in a positive feedback cycle. As the resource grows, so does the market for it, and each party in the supply chain, from tree grower to architect will benefit.
The forest register is live here and we have had enthusiastic uptake from both forest owners, and local sawmills. It will always be free to register a forest, and we expect to see an increase in the value of these forests as a result of this information resource.
We’re always tweaking and improving the register. There’s work going on currently to make it easier to add multiple stands, and developing more user-friendly input fields. Ease of use is a priority, and any feedback on how we can make things better is most welcome (email us at info@mosaicaotearoa.com). In the meantime we’re out working on getting more beautiful, interesting, valuable trees in the ground.
Chris
