Jakarta – The United States, Japan and the European Union (EU) are suspected are likely harboring forestry products from China, which came from illegally felled trees, a report by a coalition of international and Chinese organizations alleges.
According to the organizations, the three are the main markets for wood products made in China, much of which is made from wood harvested from countries with poor track records in illegal logging, corruption or human rights violations.
The report is based on five years of research by Forest Trends, the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), and the Center for Chinese Agricultural Policy and many other Chinese and regional organizations.
In its press statement, CIFOR said that China had become the world's leading importer of wood from tropical, developing countries, such as Indonesia. China has captured one-third of the global trade in wood furniture over the last 8 years.
About 70 percent of all timber that is imported into China is converted into furniture, plywood and other processed products, and then exported. This booming trade, coupled with China's own domestic growth and demand for paper products, is having a devastating impact on forests globally.
"Few consumers realize that the cheap prices they pay are directly linked to the exploitation of some of the poorest people on earth and the destruction of their forests," said Andy White, lead author of the report.
According to the report, imports of forest products from China bound for the United States and EU have increased almost 900 percent since 1998.
The United States now accounts for almost 40 percent of all forest product imports – by far the largest destination of Chinese exports. US demand for all products manufactured in China grew by 24 percent between July 2004 and July 2005 alone.
The report calls on international governments and the forestry industry to increase transparency and accountability procedures and crack down on corruption and money laundering that drives the illegal business.