🌲 Europe's forests are growing faster than they are harvested

• Forest growth exceeded harvesting in 23 EU countries with available data in 2023.
• Romania had the largest surplus with nearly 40 million cubic metres more growth than harvesting.
• Sweden had the second largest surplus in the EU with 26.4 million cubic metres of net growth.

Romania, Sweden and Poland at the top

In 23 of the EU member states with available data, forests grew faster than they were harvested in 2023. This is shown by new statistics from Eurostat, the EU's statistical office.

A simple way to measure whether timber production is sustainable is to compare the amount of timber harvested or removed during a year with the forest's natural growth, known as the net annual increment.

Romania had the largest surplus of growth compared to harvesting in 2023, at 39.9 million cubic metres. Sweden came in second with 26.4 million cubic metres and Poland in third with 26.3 million cubic metres.

France followed with approximately 24 million cubic metres and Germany with roughly the same. Finland had a surplus of around 21 million cubic metres.

A broad European trend

The pattern extends across large parts of Europe. Lithuania had a surplus of approximately 11 million cubic metres. Bulgaria, Ireland, Austria, Denmark and Slovakia all had surpluses of between five and eight million cubic metres. Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia and Portugal ranged between three and five million cubic metres.

Even countries with smaller forest areas such as Czechia, Latvia, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Cyprus and Belgium showed positive net growth, albeit with smaller margins.

Estonia was the only country where harvesting exceeded growth. There, 11.6 million cubic metres of timber were removed, while the net annual increment was 9.1 million cubic metres. This resulted in a net decrease of 2.5 million cubic metres.

Eurostat's method

Eurostat's method focuses on intentionally harvested wood. Unexpected losses such as natural disasters are not included. The purpose is to better reflect the environmental footprint of the forestry sector.

Data is not available for Greece, Spain and Italy. Norway and Switzerland, which are not EU members, are reported separately in the statistics. Norway had a surplus of approximately seven million cubic metres and Switzerland of approximately one million cubic metres.

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