Forestry officials in Minnesota are looking at Finland to provide answers for an industry experiencing rising timber prices and logger protests.
The intensive thinning and management employed by Finnish growers is becoming attractive to some Minnesotans who want to make their forests produce bigger yields at lower costs and with less controversy.
The issue has been a hot topic since logger protests over lower payments at the pulp and paper mill run by Sappi Ltd in Cloquet.
A 1998 study reveals that forest products have overtaken iron production in the state, with industry output worth about US$1.7bn, compared to iron’s US$1.3bn.
