Sustainability

We are happy to represent a sector where sustainability is at the core of our work.
So what does “sustainable forestry” actually mean?

At DSHwood, sustainability has three legs: social, environmental, and economic sustainability.

On a global scale, sustainable use of our forests is still not a reality. Each year we lose 32 million acres (13 million hectares), 26 times the size of the Grand Canyon, or 60 acres per minute. To regenerate the resources we are already consuming, we would need one and a half Earths; and our demand is still growing. No matter how you slice it, the math just does not add up. Our current consumption levels cannot be sustained if we continue at the current levels.

How can logging then be sustainable when, by definition, it requires trees to be cut down? The complete answer is complex, but if we had to reduce it to one word, it would be “balance.” The hallmark of sustainable forestry, from a purely ecological perspective, is the extent to which forestry practices mimic natural patterns of disturbance and regeneration. Sustainable forestry balances the needs of the environment, wildlife, and forest communities — supporting decent incomes while conserving our forests for future generations.

There are many practical steps that a community or business can take to protect the health and longevity of a forest while still profiting from the production and sale of timber.

And this is exactly how we work at DSHwood. We supply to a variety of markets with logs and timber responsibly sourced for sustainability, achieving up to 14 (out of 17) of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, with endurance of full traceability. We have rigorous demands for legal sourcing in our supply chains and forest operations in compliance with EUTR and UKTR requirements.

In 2021 we founded the new subsidiary “Dansk Skovcertificering ApS” together with the Danish Estate Managing company “Verner Lauritsen Holding ApS”. The sole purpose of Dansk Skovcertificering ApS is to work with certification of forests.

Denmark has a long history of sustainable management of forests that presumes a lasting production of wood. The variable interests that are tied to the forests, has entailed a need to secure a sustainable forest management system through voluntary PEFC certification. With PEFC certification the forest owners say “yes” to manage their forest according to the guidelines described in “PEFC Danmarks skovstandard” and the forest owners must formulate a policy and a goal for sustainable forestry.

We hereby secure that DSHwood continues to play an active role in securing sustainable forest products from the Danish forests.