TEAM
OF SPECIALISTS ON FOREST PRODUCTS MARKETS AND MARKETING
Inaugural Meeting
1-3 October 2001, Geneva, Switzerland,
Room F-3, Palais des Nations
1.
Adoption of the agenda
2.
Introductions
a.
Team members and meeting participants
b.
UNECE and FAO and UNECE/FAO Timber Section
c.
UNECE Timber Committee and FAO European Forestry
Commission
d.
UNECE/FAO Forest Products Marketing Programme
3.
UNECE/FAO Teams of specialists
a.
Generic functioning of teams
b.
Other existing teams
4.
UNECE/FAO Team of Specialists on Forest Products
Markets and Marketing
a.
Background
b.
Mandate
c.
Reporting, receiving guidance, expected outputs
d.
Method of operation
5.
Mandated task 1. Advise the TC and EFC on forest
products market developments
6.
Mandated task 2. Provide a forum for discussion of
forest products marketing in the ECE region
7.
Mandated task 3. Undertake studies on marketing issues,
emerging markets, market developments, etc.
a.
Suggestion: Globalisation of forest products markets
study
b.
Suggestion: Electronic business in the forest products
industry study
c.
Other
8.
Mandated task 4. Provide assistance in marketing to
central and eastern European countries through information collection, analysis
and dissemination, including workshops
9.
Mandated task 5. Contribute to the Committee's annual
market discussions
10.
Mandated task 6. Advise the TC and EFC on their
market-related publications
11.
Mandated task 7. Contribute information to the TC and
EFC on markets for certified forest products
12.
Mandated task 8. Analyse market trends and forecasts
for the TC and EFC forest sector outlook studies
13.
Mandated task 9. Advise the secretariat on the
UNECE/FAO Forest Products Marketing Programme
14.
Any other business
15.
Election of officers
16.
Arrangements for the meeting report preparation and
distribution
17.
Next meeting
Evening: Informal reception, 1800 (in
Palais des Nations)
1000 Timber
Committee session (until 1300)
1500 Market
discussions (until 1800)
1815 Timber
Committee Chairman’s reception
1000-1300
Timber Committee market discussions (continued)
1500-1800 Timber
Committee market discussions (continued)
1800 Close
of Team of Specialists meeting.
(For information, the Timber Committee Session continues on 4 and 5 October. Team of Specialists members are welcome to stay and participate. See separate agenda. On 4 October, afternoon, the Team will report the outcome of this meeting.)
905
Moment of silence in memory of victims of last month’s
terrorist attacks on the USA
906-1000
Items 0-4
1000 Items 5 and 6
1030
Coffee (in F-3)
1045-1200 Items 7-9
1200 Lunch (in cafeteria, not sponsored)
1300
Afternoon session begins. Items 10-11
1530
Coffee break
1600 Items 12-17
1800
Afternoon session ends
1800
Reception in Palais des Nations
Morning Subgroup
meetings
1000
Opening of UNECE Timber Committee Session
1300
End of morning session
Continuation of Team of
Specialists meeting by participation in Timber Committee market discussions
1500
Timber Committee market discussions (see separate list
of speakers and timing)
1800
End of afternoon session
1815
Chairman’s reception in Palais des Nations
1000
Timber Committee market discussions (continued, see
separate list of speakers and timing)
1300
End of morning session
1500
Timber Committee market discussions (continued)
1800 End of afternoon session. End of Team of Specialists
meeting.
EXPLANATORY
NOTES TO THE PROVISIONAL AGENDA
The following notes are intended to facilitate an
efficient conduct of the meeting. It includes some descriptive material which could
be the basis for discussion.
Mr. Ed Pepke, Forest Products Marketing Specialist,
UNECE and FAO Timber Section, will open the meeting. Other members of the
Timber Section may be present too. Mr. Pepke will provide background on the
founding of the UNECE/FAO Team of Specialists on Forest Products Markets and
Marketing (hereafter the “Team”).
A rapporteur should be appointed to write down the
decisions of the meeting.
According to ECE procedures, the provisional agenda is
adopted as is, or modified before beginning the meeting.
Meeting participants will introduce themselves and
express their expectations of the Team. Secondly, a brief introduction will be
given on the UNECE, the FAO, the UNECE/FAO Timber Section, the UNECE Timber
Committee, the FAO European Forestry Commission and the UNECE/FAO Forest
Products Marketing Programme. A provisional list of meeting participants and a
list of nominated Team members will be distributed.
The Timber Committee (TC) and the FAO European
Forestry Commission (EFC) conduct much of their technical work through teams of
specialists. A document explaining the responsibilities of UNECE/FAO teams of
specialists will be presented in the meeting room. Document TIM/2001/8, pages
18-26, shows the other currently existing teams of specialists. (Document
TIM/2001/8 is available on the TC website and will be available in the meeting
room.)
This item to be a general overview of the Team, its
mandate, who it reports to, from where it receives guidance and its expected
outputs. The options for methods of operation will be introduced in order that
the Team can consider how best to conduct its work during the following
discussions.
The agenda items 5-13 concern the individual mandate
tasks.
Item 5. Mandated task 1. Advise the TC and EFC on
forest products market developments
The parent bodies mandate that the Team advise them of market developments. This could be done directly in annual and biannual reporting. However other channels should be discussed, for example, publications, press releases, website articles and workshops.
At this meeting the forum will be the annual Timber
Committee market discussions. Future forums should be considered outside of the
annual TC market discussions. For example, could Team members meet and
participate in other national and international forest products marketing
forums? Conducting workshops on forest products marketing would provide
additional opportunities to exchange information. The Team should discuss how
discussions and exchange of information could continue in conjunction with Team
meetings.
Item 7. Mandated task 3. Undertake studies on marketing issues, emerging markets, market developments, etc.
The Team should consider potential studies which would
involve their combined market intelligence and expertise. For example, the
keynote presentation at the 2001 TC market discussions will be the
globalisation of forest products markets. Would this provide a basis for a study?
Another suggestion is to conduct a survey of the development of electronic
business in the forest products industry. The Team members will have other
ideas for market studies. The outcome of such studies should be considered, for
example as basis of UNECE/FAO Geneva Timber and Forest Study Papers
(which are translated into the 3 official ECE languages), UNECE/FAO Geneva
Timber and Forest Discussion Papers (no translation), incorporation in the UNECE/FAO
Timber Bulletin “Forest Products Annual Market Review”, publication on the
TC website or a combination of these options.
Item 8. Mandated task 4. Provide assistance in marketing to central and eastern European countries through information collection, analysis and dissemination, including workshops
One of the ECE and FAO competitive advantages is their
work with central and eastern European countries (CEECs) and developing
countries respectively. Emphasis on assistance to CEECs occurs throughout the
TC and EFC integrated programme of work. The Team should consider how to
further assistance in forest products marketing to CEECs.
Through the UNECE/FAO Forest Products Marketing
Programme a series of workshops on marketing of forest products have been
conducted in CEECs in order to collect and disseminate information on forest
products marketing. Workshops on marketing of wood products have been held in
Hungary (1994), Estonia (1996) and Russia (1997). The last workshop was held in
Moldova (2000) on marketing of non-wood forest products. While invitations exist
from many central and eastern European and western Asian countries in the ECE
region to host marketing workshops, it is essential to confirm financing before
beginning planning. The Team should consider sources of funding for workshops
and any other assistance in-kind.
This meeting intentionally overlaps with the annual TC
market discussions on 2-3 October 2001 in order to allow active participation
of the experts on the Team. The market discussions are divided into distinct
market sectors, traditionally those sectors where countries forecast the
current and next year’s timber markets (production, trade and consumption). The
traditional market sectors are softwoods (sawnwood and logs), hardwoods
(sawnwood and logs), panels and roundwood. Markets for certified forest
products became a new market segment in 1998, although forecasts do not exist.
Furthermore, in 2000 and 2001 a discussion on secondary forest (value-added)
forest products was added in order to show demand for primary wood products. An
economic overview has been a regular presentation.
Typically a member of the secretariat introduces each
market sector discussion by presenting a summary of the Timber Committee market
forecasts as synthesized from country responses to the Timber Committee
Questionnaire. Next, 1 or 2 experts present their views on current market
developments. Each market sector ends with an open discussion by the experts
and the participants which are a mix of TC delegates plus members of the wood
products trade who come for the market discussions.
The secretariat drafts the TC market statement each
night following the close of the meeting. The draft is submitted for
translation into French and Russian the next morning and then distributed
during the session before the formal drafting committee meets. This year the
drafting committee, composed of representatives from major producing and
trading countries, and open to all countries which wish to participate, will
meet on Friday morning at 0900. The drafting committee uses the secretariat
draft as a basis for producing the final TC market statement. When the market
statement is adopted along with the rest of the meeting report during the final
session, the statement becomes the body of the TC press release. The
secretariat adds a chapeau or lead-in before the official market statement in
the press release. The market statement also becomes the text of Timber
Bulletin, issue number 6, this year titled “Forest Products Markets in 2001
and Prospects for 2002.” The text is supplemented with the TC forecasts in the Timber
Bulletin issue. The statement and the statistics are published
electronically on the TC website.
Following their participation and observation of the
market discussions the Team should consider how the discussions could be
improved. In the past the market discussions have been one full day, however
the Bureaux (officers) of the TC and EFC expanded them to 1½ days this year to
provide more discussion time. The secretariat added an additional market sector
on pulp and paper, as well as beginning with a keynote presentation as
initiated last year. The Team should evaluate whether these additions should be
maintained.
The selection of speakers is critical to the success
of the market discussions. The secretariat has attempted to attract high
quality speakers that are both technically competent, good public speakers and
who are active in forest products marketing. In order to make the annual discussions
interesting for regular delegates, we rotate speakers every year. The Team
could help the secretariat by suggesting speakers for future market
discussions. Unfortunately the secretariat has no funds for speakers’ travel
expenses or honorariums.
At one time the UNECE/FAO Timber Bulletin
“Forest Products Annual Market Review” was a basis for the market discussions.
The secretariat was freed from this obligation and its deadline by the February
2001 Bureaux meeting. Nevertheless the publication production was done by the
secretariat in time for printing and distribution for the 2001 discussions, as
was its executive summary. Unfortunately there were typical delays in printing
the camera-ready English version and its appearance at the Session is in doubt.
The secretariat would value the opinion of the Team as to whether we should
continue to attempt to coordinate the production of the Forest Products
Annual Market Review with the annual market discussions. The original
English version has been on the Timber Committee website since its August
completion, however there was an unexpectedly long delay in printing the
English version and an expected delay in initiating translation of the French
and Russian versions.
The main market analysis publications are: 1. the UNECE/FAO
Timber Bulletin “Forest Products Annual Market Review” (ECE/TIM/BULL/54/3),
2. the UNECE/FAO Timber Bulletin “Forest Products Markets in (current
year) and Prospects for (next year)” (ECE/TIM/BULL/54/6), and 3. ), UNECE/FAO
Geneva Timber and Forest Discussion Papers (for example, “Status of Forest
Certification in the ECE Region, Summer 2001”, ECE/TIM/DP/23).
Acknowledging that the secretariat conducted a user
survey in 1998 which focussed on the Forest Products Annual Market Review
(see separate brief in Annex I from February 2001 on the Market Review),
the Team should develop an internal questionnaire to assess the publication. Some
questions which might be asked are:
a.
How important is the analysis, as compared to the
statistical/graphic information (some respondents suggested only data without
text)?
b.
What is the relative importance of timeliness and
completeness?
c.
How should the secretariat address time/scope/depth
tradeoffs?
d.
How detailed a scope?
e.
Should special chapters (e.g. on particular countries
or products) be issued as a part of the Market Review or as separate
publications, for instance as Discussion Papers? (see question 7 below)
f.
Should FAO consider producing a global forest products
market review, of which the Market Review of the ECE region could be one
component with input from ITTO and other organizations?
The Team should consider the
other market-related publication in the Timber Bulletin series:
The Team should evaluate the
market-related issues of the Geneva Timber and Forest Discussion Paper
series:
In evaluating the Discussion
Papers the Team should realize that the secretariat has considerably less
input than in Timber Bulletins and Study Papers. The Discussion
Papers are an easy method of publishing works by outside authors.
The reports from the 4
marketing workshops in central and eastern European countries are available,
however the only proceedings that were published were from the first workshop in
Hungary in 1994. Proceedings were published from another workshop of a former
team of specialists on “Recycling, Energy and Market Interactions.” Perhaps
part of the problem is the internal ECE rule that the secretariat does not
publish proceedings, but rather that this is the responsibility of the host.
Should the secretariat
produce an annual CD-ROM of the TIMBER database (the 1964 to present database
of forest products production, trade and consumption)? Should the CD also
include the current market-related publications? Should it be distributed for
free or sold? If sold, for how much? Who would be the target audiences?
Should the
secretariat continue to develop the Timber Committee “Market Information
Service”? Should it evolve into a more user-friendly “Market Information
System”? If yes, what resources would be available to contract for its
development and maintenance? The MIS currently contains market reports, market
statistics (from the Timber Bulletins, but not all issues yet, and the
TIMBER database), Timber Committee market forecasts and certified forest
products. The secretariat has initiated work with Nordic industry federations
to survey their members on their needs for market-related information. A
representative of the Finnish Forest Industries Federation may present the
status of the project.
In summary, the
Team should decide how best to conduct an evaluation of the TC and EFC
market-related publications and products.
Item 11. Mandated task 7. Contribute information to the TC and EFC on markets for certified forest products
Information on certified
forest products markets is published in the above-mentioned Geneva Timber
and Forest Discussion Paper, a chapter in the Timber Bulletin
“Forest Products Annual Market Review”, the TC market statement and its
subsequent press release and Timber Bulletin issue “Forest Products
Markets in (current year) and Prospects for (next year)” and on the TC Market
Information Service website.
Since this mandate item was
written and approved, the TC and EFC established an informal network of
country-nominated correspondents on certified forest products markets and
certification of sustainable forest management. The survey of these
correspondents was conducted in June 2001 and the results published in the Discussion
Paper on certification.
The Team should consider how
it could contribute information to the current publication opportunities on
certification and whether other channels would be of value in collecting and
disseminating information on certified forest products markets.
Item 12. Mandated task 8. Analyse market trends and forecasts for the TC and EFC forest sector outlook studies
The secretariat, led by Dr. Volker Sasse, Forestry Officer, conducts the European Forest Sector Outlook Studies (EFSOS). This work is an update of traditional work of the TC and EFC titled “European Timber Trends Studies”. While a Team of Specialists on Forest Sector Outlook already exists, they have requested cooperation from this Team on the market aspects of EFSOS. Possible future needs for the Team’s expertise should be discussed and perhaps the Team need only note their availability to coordinate activities with EFSOS when requested.
Item 13. Mandated task 9. Advise the secretariat on the UNECE/FAO Forest Products Marketing Programme
The UNECE/FAO
Forest Products Marketing Programme gathers all marketing-related activities
carried out by the UNECE and FAO Timber Section into one programme. The
secretariat will present the current programme as outlined in the document in
annex II. The Team is welcome to comment on the current programme, and to make
recommendations, especially concerning the listed needs of the programme. The
Team may wish to consider future directions for the programme and potential
steps to achieve its goal.
Item 14. Any other business
The secretariat has
none to propose.
Item 15. Election of officers
The Team should
elect a leader and at least one deputy leader. The Team leaders should have resources
available to carry out their duties, specifically they should have time and
travel funds available. The Team should agree to hold elections either annually
or biennially.
Item 16. Arrangements for the meeting report
preparation and distribution
It is proposed that
the secretariat, the rapporteur and the Team’s new officers write the meeting
report and then circulate it to the entire Team following the meeting. With the
workload of market discussions and their follow-up immediately after this meeting,
a reasonable deadline should be set for preparation of the report and its
distribution. If the Team decides to have a website, the report should be
uploaded to the site.
Item 17. Date and place of next meeting
The Team may always
meet in Geneva at the Palais des Nations. The Team could consider alternative
meeting sites, perhaps in conjunction with marketing-related events. The Team
should consider whether meeting annually in conjunction with the Timber
Committee market discussions is desirable.
Annex
I
UNECE/FAO
Timber Bulletin “Forest Products Annual Market Review”
(Secretariat
note for the February 2001 Bureaux discussion of the Forest Products Annual Market Review during the review of the integrated ECE Timber Committee and FAO
European Forestry Commission programme of work)
Drafted
by Ed Pepke[1], 20.2.01
Current
objective: To provide an up-to-date, early, comprehensive,
high-quality analysis of forest products market developments in the ECE region
over the previous 18 months as an issue of Timber
Bulletin and as a background document for the annual Timber Committee
market discussions.
Target
audiences: 1. Governments and delegations to the Timber
Committee, 2. Market analysts (public institutions), 3. Market analysts
(private institutions and consultants), 4. Universities (faculty researchers
and students). Each audience has different needs, which explains why the Review has different components. (More
detail on target audiences needs attached.)
Secretariat
input: The secretariat produces the Review in consideration of the needs of the target audiences, the
objectives, the official statistics available, the supplementary information
available and the short production period between the availability of
statistics and the deadline for submission for translating, printing and
distribution before the Timber Committee market discussions. The secretariat
finds the analysis as a good preparation for their introductions to the
different market sectors in the discussions. Secretariat input is supplemented
by consultants, both paid and voluntary.
Contents: The
Review is based on annual statistics
gathered from member countries in April on forest products production and
trade. These statistics are presented in tabular and graphic form within the
appropriate Review chapters. The
statistics are published in raw form in another issue of the Timber Bulletin and in the TIMBER
database and on the Timber Committee and FAO Forestry Department websites.
The analysis of these statistics, the most current available,
forms the basis of the main chapters which become a basis for the Timber
Committee’s annual market discussions. The main analytical chapters are: wood
raw materials, sawn softwood, sawn hardwood, wood-based panels and pulp and
paper. In addition, in 1998 the Committee added a new chapter, and
corresponding market sector discussion, on certified forest products. However
this last chapter is not based on country-supplied statistics since none
currently exist.
In addition the Review
has traditionally had a few additional chapters not based completely on the
country-supplied statistics, i.e. the overview and economic developments,
written by the Geneva secretariat, and tropical timber, written by the ITTO
secretariat.
These standard chapters have been augmented by special
chapters to profile significant market developments, e.g. “Effects of the
December 1999 storms on European timber markets.” For the past 2 years a
special chapter has highlighted an emerging ECE region’s country’s market from
central and eastern Europe, e.g. Estonia and Poland. And for the past years a
special chapter has highlighted an important non-ECE region trading partner’s
forest products market, e.g. China, Japan and New Zealand. Normally special
chapters are written by external consultants, both paid and voluntary.
The analysis of statistics on consumption, production
and trade from the past year, is augmented by statistics for the current year,
i.e. first and second quarters, as published in the trade press, or available
through country statistical correspondents. This secondary source of statistics
is important to provide an even more current basis for the market discussions
held in September or October at the Timber Committee session. Secondary sources
of information, both official from governments, and from trade associations and
trade press, are used to supplement official statistics, for example for price
statistics.
The reporting and analysis of statistics is augmented
by reporting of significant market developments. In the 1998 User Survey,
respondents said that they wanted this “news” aspect too, with approximately
70% of them saying that the current level of news was ok, and about 20%
requesting more news.
Comparative
advantages of the Review and the
Timber Committee market discussions: 1. These are the earliest
available analysis of the entire primary forest products markets. 2. These are
the only comprehensive analysis of the ECE region’s forest products markets. 3.
These are the only comprehensive analysis of all primary forest products market
sectors. 4. The Review is available
in printed version in English, French and Russian and is available on the
Internet in downloadable format. 5. The Review
and the Timber Committee market discussion and its market statement in a press
release and Timber Bulletin and
corresponding forecasts are widely quoted in the trade press, used by industry
and government analysts and have traditionally been used by successive industry
meetings, for example the European Softwood Conference and the
European-American Hardwood Convention. 6. The Review is one of the few sources of information on market
developments in central and eastern European countries.
Feedback
from the 1998 User Survey: “The results justify the special nature of the
Annual Market Review, although some statements contradict each other. Responses
point out that the scope of use among the respondents is wide, due to the
deviation. Therefore only a few clear messages can be drawn from the table:
·
it provides comprehensive analysis
·
the overview of general economic developments is
necessary
·
it should include developments outside the ECE region
·
Otherwise it should be planned and produced in a way
that doesn’t prevent its publishing on time, preferably faster than before.
Analysis by background
variables: When analysing the results by background variables,
differences between regions are again stronger than between fields of work.
East Europeans prefer more information, whereas Nordic people do not think that
an overview of general economic developments is necessary. They, together with
North Americans, also agreed strongest with the statement that the ”Review”
should appear faster, even though this reduces the comprehensive nature of the
analysis
Additional feedback is
gained via the annual reader survey, which is not well responded, and is mostly
complementary. Additional recognition of the Review comes from the trade press which quotes findings and
statistics. Furthermore, the reaction to the Review has been positive at the Timber Committee market
discussions. It should be noted however, that these parties are not unbiased
and the above referenced User Survey provides a more statistically sound
survey.
Questions for consideration of the February 2001 Bureaux meeting:
·
How important is the analysis, as compared to the
statistical/graphic information (some respondents suggested only data without
text)?
·
What is the relative importance of timeliness and
completeness?
·
How should the secretariat address time/scope/depth
tradeoffs?
·
How detailed a scope?
·
Should special chapters (e.g. on particular countries
or products) be issued as a part of the FPAMR or as separate publications, for
instance as Discussion Papers?
·
Should FAO consider producing a global forest products
market review, of which the Review of
the ECE region could be one component with input from ITTO and other
organizations?
The workshops on marketing
for countries in transition are also linked to the market analysis work. If it
were decided to develop the work on sustainable forest products markets, they
could also be expanded
Monitoring developments in
markets for certified forest products (CFPs) has been carried out over the last
4 years as decided by the Timber Committee. The most visible outputs have been:
discussion papers on the “Status of Forest Certification in the ECE Region”,
annual discussions at the Timber Committee, and a chapter in the Forest Products Annual Market Review.
The work on the Discussion Papers has until now been based on voluntary
contributions by outside experts.
It has been proposed to
establish a network of country correspondents to supply information about
national developments in certification of SFM and CFPs to the secretariat for
use in the publications mentioned above. The secretariat does not envisage that
the country correspondents would need to travel, but would rather be a source
of information. Participants may wish to advise
whether such a network should be established and, if so, whether it should be
of an informal nature or whether it would be more effective if the
correspondents were officially nominated by their countries.
The idea of a team of
specialists on market issues was proposed at the Rome session, but suspended
pending the extended bureaux meeting, which should express its opinion on the
usefulness and priority of such a team. Members may consider that such a team (which
already exists informally as a network of contacts of the marketing officer)
would perform a useful function. It
might also play a role if it were decided to organise the market discussions at
the annual Timber Committee session separately from the programme review part
of the session.
Annex
II
UNECE
and FAO Forest Products Marketing Program
Objective of the FPMP: To ensure sustained forest
products markets, i.e. with products meeting customers’ demands, while
maintaining production capacity and a continued demand for forest products, in
order to ensure sustainable forest management in economic, social and
ecological terms.
1. Analysis of market
developments and trends
Forest Products Annual Market Review, 1999-2000
Forest Products
Markets in 2000 and Prospects for 2001
2. Collection of statistics
and information
JFSQ and TCQ questionnaires
Surveying trade journals
Surveying WWW sources
Participating in international conferences
Through informal network of market specialists
3. Production of market
reports
Timber Bulletin
issues
Special reports for international conferences and
workshops
Secretariat documents, e.g. Markets for Certified Forest Products and
Markets for
Secondary Processed Wood Products
Special chapters in Forest
Products Annual Market Review
4. Annual market
discussions at Timber Committee Session
Participation
by government, international organizations, European Commission, trade
organizations, industry, NGOs
5. Workshops and seminars
and their proceedings and reports
Development of marketing of
forest products in central and eastern European countries (CEECs). Last workshop:
Development of sustainable markets for non wood forest products in CEECs, in
Republic of Moldova, 2000. Others in Hungary, Estonia and Russia.
“Wood--an environmentally friendly material",
Sweden, 1994
"Policy issues in
timber markets and recycling and energy generation from wood", Hamburg,
1995
"Certification of SFM in CITs", Prague, 1998
"Recycling,
energy and market interactions", Istanbul, 1998
6. Teams of specialists
related to marketing
Forest products markets and marketing
Recycling,
energy and market interactions
Certification of forest products
New
products, recycling, markets and applications of forest products
1.
Additional assistance to CEECs
A. Country-sponsored
Associate Professional Officer (APO)
B. Travel funds
for CEEC participants to workshops
2.