Friday Offcuts – 29 August 2025
Click to Subscribe - It's FREE! Welcome to this week’s edition of Friday Offcuts.WorkSafe New Zealand has released a new Approved Code of Practice for forestry, developed with industry to simplify compliance and improve safety in a sector that continues to record the nation’s highest fatality rate. In Australia, the proposed Great Koala National Park has sparked strong criticism from contractors, who warn it could damage rural jobs and timber supply without improving conservation. At the same time, a leading science body is urging action to reduce diesel reliance in forestry and other heavy industries. Trade pressures are also in focus, with Australia recording a rare wood deficit with the U.S. and New Zealand exporters bracing for potential U.S. tariffs. Innovation includes a biorefinery project using biomass to replace plastics and NZ sawmills turning timber waste into energy. Major industry events are ahead, including WPMA’s National Conference, FGR’s Annual Conference, and the upcoming Residues2Revenues 2025 and Bioeconomy Innovations 2025 events. Finally, the latest Australian & New Zealand Forest Products Industry Maps have been released, now redesigned as standalone editions for each country. Read these stories and more in this week’s edition.
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This week we have for you:
Forging a new path for forestry safety
New guidance to simplify safety for forestry businesses and
workers has been published by WorkSafe New Zealand.
Forestry had the highest fatality rate of any sector in 2024,
with 16.58 deaths per 100,000 workers. The fatality rate is 20 times
higher than the average for all industries.The Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) for forestry and harvesting operations was spearheaded by WorkSafe, in collaboration with the forestry industry. The ACOP has now been launched by the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, Brooke van Velden. The guidance outlines the responsibilities and legal expectations for operators, and helps workers know what good looks like. An update to the good practice guide for small forestry operations has also been published, along with educational resources to aid understanding. New information is included on machine safety, planting and pruning (silviculture), managing work-related health, and manual tree felling. “The guidance blends technical expertise with hands-on knowledge from the sector, and uses shared language between the two,” says WorkSafe’s chief executive Sharon Thompson. WorkSafe's role is to influence businesses and workers to meet their responsibilities and keep people healthy and safe. Reducing deaths and injuries in forestry requires everyone in the sector to properly plan for and practise safe harvesting. The updated ACOP is the first key deliverable from WorkSafe’s priority plan for forestry. The organisation will be undertaking targeted assessments to help embed the guidance in the coming months. The Forest Industry Safety Council, the New Zealand Forest Owners Association, and the Forest Industry Contractors Association partnered with WorkSafe to develop the new guidance. “Huge strides have been made to improve work health and safety in the forestry industry, but there’s plenty of work to be done. We want the same thing – for our people to be safe on the job, and to come home from work safely every day,” says Joe Akari, chief executive of the Forest Industry Safety Council and Safetree New Zealand. Read the updated forestry guidance More >> Source: Worksafe NZ Related Post: Transitioning to the new Approved Code of Practice The Forestry Industry Safety Council has received inquiries from forest managers and contractors regarding the transition to the new forestry Approved Code of Practice (ACoP), launched earlier this week. WorkSafe advises that the key changes to the new ACoP are to:
WorkSafe has advised it will continue to work with forestry businesses and workers to understand the ACoP, which sets out best practice and industry examples for identifying and managing risks. The forestry sector is therefore able to undertake a comprehensive review of practices and align policies and procedures accordingly. Learning modules will be available on WorkSafe's website once the updated guidance is published to support businesses and workers with putting the new ACoP into practice. Find the guidance on the WorkSafe website. More >> Source: Safetree / FISC  Not a single koala will be saved
The NSW Government is set to announce the formation of the Great
Koala National Park on the Mid North Coast of NSW in order to save the
koala population. The new park will surely gladden the hearts
of activists everywhere and justify the millions of dollars generated by
the outrage factory over many years.And not a single koala will be saved. The study conducted by NSW National Parks as part of the assessment for the park showed that the koala habitation in the state forest is the same as the national park next door. The regulations, management and controls mean harvesting crews spot and avoid koalas, protect and preserve important trees, enhance forest health and make space for habitat and production trees of the future. Condemning a forest to a future of benign neglect is the worst possible outcome but the most likely one. Consider the case of the Pilliga Forest in north west NSW. In 2005 a productive industry in that area was scaled back to set aside forest for environmental conservation. The population of koalas at the time was 30,000 across 500,000 hectares, at the time the only known population in all of NSW to be increasing. Industry must have been the problem. Today the population of koalas, in an area 187 times the size of Greater Sydney, is 50. Clearly, industry was the problem. Under a conservationist approach management for forest health stopped. We stopped maintaining mixed species and having multiple aged trees. Food for koalas disappeared. We stopped investing in invasive weed and pest control, not because we wanted to but because it is too big a job for too few people over too large an area and that is much too expensive. So it became harder for koalas to move through the forest and they were more likely to be dinner for a fox or cat. But the real kicker is the struggle to effectively control the now inevitable fires that rage through unmanaged scrub. More than two thirds of the Pilliga Forest burnt in 2019-20 and about a quarter this last summer. In part because we had lost the skilled, experienced and capable people and their equipment who knew the bush and were on hand to step in when needed. But industry was the problem! This is not just an issue affecting the forest, but it also affects the towns. Places you’ve probably never heard of like Barradine and Gwabegar. Soon to be places like Dorrigo, Bellingen and Bowraville. Because a forestry job is stable and secure, with an earning capacity two and a half times the average of hospitality. With a forestry job you can work hard and earn good money in rural areas, be home with your family every night and available to volunteer in your community. You can’t do that with a job that has you working nights and weekends, or one that is fly-in fly-out for weeks at a time. The new area of park is rumoured to be 176,000 hectares (66 times the size of Greater Sydney, estimated koala population between 12,111 and 14,541) of which 100,000 hectares is already protected for conservation. Industry, the extreme pro-forestry activists that we are, suggested to government that a medium-sized park would deliver the government’s commitment and balance important conservation with sustainable production. But industry with its stable jobs, support for communities, more than a century of real-world forest management experience and 2.5 times multiplier on economic activity, must be the problem. Instead of the win-win that we could have had, the state of NSW is going to lose about a third of its native timber production capacity and hundreds of millions of dollars of income. It will lose the ability to produce power poles, timber wharves, high value feature timbers, decking and more. It will export jobs and carbon and sovereign capacity. The uncertainty and reduced activity will affect the rest of the forest products sector at the very time we need more timber and wood fibre of all kinds for sustainability, renewability and climate sensitivity. It will also put more pressure in the international market which is already awash with illegal timber, threatening Sumatran tigers, Congolese gorillas and Amazonian tamarins. And not a single koala will be saved. More >> Source: Australian Forest Contractors Association (AFCA)  SnapSTAT - Australia has a wood deficit with the USA In calendar year 2024, Australia operated a trade deficit for wood and wood products with the USA, valued at AUD84.2 million. That is, Australia exported wood and wood products valued at AUD9.0 million, but imports from the USA were valued at AUD93.2 million. That balance of trade deficit was the lowest in many years. .png) Read more: IndustryEdge Credit: Industry Edge, Victoria, Australia Timber exported to the U.S. still in limbo
Tariffs on wood products exported to the United States remain at
‘0’ percent, as the section 232 Investigation, aimed at
determining the global effects imports of timber, lumber and their
derivative products pose to the U.S. supply chain, continues.
Although the ‘0’ percent tariff rate is a welcome relief for wood product exporters, the uncertainty of what may eventuate from the section 232 Investigation is causing nervousness across New Zealand wood processers and manufacturers, who export over NZD$370 million of value-added wood product to the United States. Developments over the weekend included President Trump announcing on a Truth Social post that a major new tariff investigation on furniture (incl. wooden furniture) coming into the United States will be completed within 50 days at a tariff rate to be determined. This was followed by release of the draft EU and U.S. Trade Agreement Framework which promptly ensures that the tariff rate applied to section 232 actions on lumber does not exceed 15 percent. ‘These announcements create further uncertainty, with a survey of our main U.S. exporters of wood products to the U.S. highlighting that a tariff rate over 5 percent or over will have a significant hit on their profitability in the longer- term.’ Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association (WPMA) Chief Executive, Mark Ross, said. ‘The U.S. is a growing market for our value-added wood products and with a drop off in NZ domestic demand, profitable export markets are critical to growing our industry.’ Having our Trade Minister, Todd McClay, speaking up in support of the NZ wood processing industry on the section 232 Investigation in his recent Washington negotiations with U.S. Trade Representatives, is highly valued by WPMA members and we thank the Minister and his negotiation team for backing our exporters. ‘The key is to present a united face across industry and government to the U.S. decision makers as to the value of our wood products to the U.S. and that our products are not a threat to their domestic timber manufacturing or supply chain,’ said Ross. With the outcome of this section 232 investigation expected no later than early December, WPMA will continue to engage with our allied U.S. Associations, who are lobbying the U.S. Administration to keep imported timber and lumber products tariff free as a means of levelling recent domestic U.S. house price rises and maintaining robust supply chains. New Zealand is known in the U.S. for providing high value and high-quality wood products, most of which is sold into the DIY end user’s market, such as Home Depot, Lowes and Menards. As a small niche supplier of wood products that are needed by the U.S. domestic building market, such as long clear Radiata pine boards, mouldings and primed product, there is a strong argument for keeping New Zealand timber and lumber imports tariff free. With comments from exporters such as customers in the U.S. are already pressurising us to reduce product price, it will be a tough ask to pass any additional tariff costs on should they prevail. ‘While the section 232 Investigation continues, WPMA will do what we can to advocate to keep New Zealand imported timber, lumber and their derivatives into the United Sates tariff free’, said Ross, ‘But, at the end of the day the U.S. President will be the final tariff rate decision maker, and we know from experience we need to be ready to expect the unexpected. More >> Source: WPMA 
New report: Australian forestry must reduce diesel reliance
In a new report, Australia’s leading tech and engineering
academy has highlighted the urgent need for Australia to reduce reliance
on diesel in mining, road freight, agriculture, fisheries and forestry.
The report, released this week by the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE), in partnership with Fortescue, gives five clear recommendations, including that the Federal Government commission an independent review to reform financial incentives that support diesel use. ATSE CEO Dr Kylie Walker said that to achieve its low-emission targets, Australia needed to take a new approach to fueling heavy industry, and this could be achieved by applying technological solutions, and reforming policy and tax levers that support diesel. “There is an urgent need to decarbonise Australia’s most emissions-intensive sectors,” Dr Walker said. “By encouraging the application of mature clean fuel technologies, investing in fast-tracking clean tech in development, reducing the cost of green alternatives and increasing the cost of diesel in a targeted and balanced way, Australia can achieve its industrial decarbonisation." Early-stage research and development initiatives are also crucial in supporting the transition away from diesel. The report calls for an independent review which should consider a range of reforms, including to the Fuel Tax Credits Scheme (FTCS), which is a major barrier to the transition away from diesel. By subsidising diesel use, the FTCS currently protects high-emitting sectors from the true cost of fossil fuel consumption and undermines national emissions reduction goals. The report also recommends examining changes to the Australian market-based emissions reduction mechanism by exploring the introduction of carbon pricing or an adjustment of the Safeguard Mechanism to better reflect the environmental impact of diesel. ATSE’sreport highlights a range of mature and emerging technologies, and the need for a comprehensive techno-economic assessment of decarbonisation pathways beyond electrification – as well as mechanisms to bring clean fuel tech to market. Other recommendations include the establishment of a coordinated Future Diesel Strategy, investment in comprehensive infrastructure to support the clean energy transition and targeted R&D investment. ATSE Fellow, Fortescue Board Member and former CSIRO Chief Executive, Dr Larry Marshall, emphasised the importance of Industry partnering with Government to shape science-based Industry and Energy policy. “Heavy Industry wants to transition to cleaner fuels, but the current policy settings make it harder than it should be. Right now, the Fuel Tax Credit scheme effectively subsidises burning diesel, while companies that invest in clean alternatives face higher costs especially in this transition period. That imbalance holds back innovation and locks in emissions,” Dr Marshall said. The Federal Government has a critical role to play in fixing those settings and creating incentives that accelerate the adoption of clean technologies. More >> Source: ATSE 
2025 Forest Products Industry Maps for AU & NZ released The Forest Industry Engineering Association (FIEA) is pleased to announce the release of the 2025 editions of the Australia and New Zealand Forest Products Industry Maps. These maps have long been a staple resource for the sector—widely displayed in offices across the region and relied upon by equipment and service suppliers in the field. Previous editions have sold out quickly, underlining their value and popularity. What’s new in 2025? For the first time, the maps have been published as separate editions for New Zealand and Australia, responding to industry demand and enabling larger, more detailed layouts. The 2025 maps include over 60 major updates to mill locations, ownership, and production. In total, they feature 172 wood processing operations, including: 77 sawmills, all fibreboard, particleboard, OSB, plywood, pulp & paper, veneer/LVL/CLT, and paperboard plants, and major chip export and wood manufacturing operations  Maps can be ordered via the FIEA website. Source & image credit: FIEA  Building a workplace where migrants skills thrive
Despite rising unemployment, New Zealand still relies on skilled migrants.
As the economy rebounds, competition for talent will only increase.
Employers who ensure new staff feel supported, included and empowered to
succeed, set themselves up for a thriving workplace.Migrants bring many valuable skills, but may need time to adjust as they face several common hurdles. These include communication styles, where accents, Kiwi slang, and indirect feedback can take getting used to. The workplace culture itself can be a challenge, as many migrants are not used to flat management structures and informal or blunt line manager feedback. Furthermore, they can experience social isolation, especially without local networks or shared cultural references. Finally, understanding their rights is another hurdle, as employment law and health & safety protocols may be new territory. What employers can do:
More >> Source & image credit: Greenstone Recruitment FGR annual conference - the science of what’s next
Forest Growers Research is running their 2025 annual conference
in Auckland, on 14-16 October 2025. With over 40 speakers,
panel Q&A sessions and a field trip to Auckland forests, this three-day conference will bring together research, industry, and government
stakeholders from across the forestry sector.The theme of this year’s conference is The Science of What’s Next, so look forward to discovering the latest highlights in forestry innovation and technology from FGR’s collaborative research programmes. The Annual Dinner on the evening of Day 1 will include the presentation of eight prestigious Science Awards that acknowledge the achievements of those who contribute to research and forestry science. Two new awards will be presented this year, which will recognise inspiring leadership in forestry science and the importance of research support. Day 1 – Tuesday 14 October Listen to presentations on topics such as the forces shaping the future of New Zealand forestry from industry, government, and market perspectives. There will be a particular focus on the future of radiata pine and the development of the next successful forestry species. Day 2 – Wednesday 15 October Start the day by celebrating diversity in forestry at the Wahine in Forestry breakfast then focus on the interactions between trees and their ecosystems at the first presentation session. Key advances in digital technology will be the focus of the next two sessions. The fourth session asks the question: “What’s next?”, and explores topics such as species diversification, sector innovation, and measurement of research effectiveness. The day concludes with a special networking session featuring posters and technical displays. Day 3 – Thursday 16 October Enjoy a full-day field trip of Auckland forests. The experience will facilitate discussions about research programmes across the forestry sector. Registrations for the 2025 Forest Growers Research conference close Monday 22 September 2025. Click here to view the programme. Register via this link. Source & image credit: Forest Growers Research  WPMA conference - wood is the key to a resilient future
The Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association's
(WPMA) 2025 national conference is being held in Wellington
on Wednesday 8 October 2025. The event will
bring together a range of business leaders and influential
stakeholders from a variety of sectors delivering insights
into future opportunities for wood processing and manufacturing.The theme “Wood – The Key to a Resilient Future” will promise a day full of insightful keynote presentations, discussions and industry networking. Speakers will cover topics ranging from Government policy, to innovation, New Zealand mass timber building developments, science, trade, forestry supply chains, economic activity and education. Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with conference partners and exhibitors in the conference hub and enjoy social engagements, including an evening of cocktails and a Gala Dinner. Registrations are now open, so secure your place for the upcoming 2025 Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association (WPMA) National Conference. More >> Source & image credit: WPMA Forestry biomass replacing plastics in food packaging
In a move set to disrupt the global packaging industry, New
Zealand’s NZ Bio Forestry and
Taiwan-based PanCycle and Inspira Applied Bio
Solutions have signed a strategic Agreement to develop a
network of biorefineries producing sustainable, biodegradable
biochemicals from New Zealand Pinus radiata. These next-generation materials will replace petroleum-based plastics in food and
beverage packaging, targeting global markets hungry for sustainable
alternatives.The partnership’s initial focus is on producing biodegradable and recyclable biochemicals for beverage cups, food packaging, and utensils. It will start with the Australasian market, where demand for beverage cups alone exceeds 4 billion units annually. The first New Zealand-based biorefinery will produce 25,000 tonnes of a key biochemical, with plans for up to five biorefineries capable of delivering more than 100,000 tonnes per year. Wayne Mulligan, CEO and Founder of NZ Bio Forestry, said, “This agreement builds on more than five years working with Inspira Applied Bio Solutions on a series of biochemicals and bioenergy applications and two years of deep technical collaboration with PanCycle”. “Together, we’ve developed formulations, aligned leadership, and worked on product specifications and manufacturing requirements. NZ Bio Forestry alongside our Taiwanese partners, we were honoured to receive a Global Top 100 Award for carbon-negative bioplastics in 2023. Since then, we’ve been working with PanCycle and international investors to accelerate deployment. We see New Zealand as a good platform to commence biorefining,” said Wayne. Kai Hsuan Lin, CEO of Inspira Applied Bio Solutions, added, “This agreement builds on the existing partnership with NZ Bio Forestry and extends far beyond packaging and beverage cups. PanCycle is committed to removing petroleum-based materials from its entire packaging and utensil range." This opens a market far larger than cups alone. Inspira Applied Bio Solutions and NZ Bio Forestry will be supporting PanCycle’s manufacturing expansion initially into Australia and New Zealand. New Zealand’s forestry biomass provides a significant strategic advantage. New Zealand offers an abundant, renewable and sustainably managed forestry feedstock for producing high-value biochemicals such as PLA, PHA, and lignin-based materials. The flagship biorefinery in New Zealand will be a model for further expansion across the country. These companies proudly produce bioplastics without diverting vital food crops like corn or cassava - protecting global food security and ensuring harvests feed people, not factories. At the same time, they are tackling one of the planet’s most urgent challenges: removing plastics and microplastics from our environment, our oceans, and ultimately, from the food we eat. The collaboration between the companies represents a milestone in the global shift from fossil-based plastics to scalable, biodegradable alternatives, and underscores our collective commitment to a circular bioeconomy, innovation, decarbonisation, and economic sustainable growth. More >> Source: NZ Bio Forestry Image credit: PanCycle Editor's note: Wayne Mulligan, CEO of NZ Bio Forestry, is speaking at the upcoming Bioeconomy Innovations 2025 event, being held on 21-22 October 2025, in Rotorua, New Zealand. .jpg) Marlborough sawmill cracked the code on timber’s wasteEvery year, around 400,000 tonnes of treated timber waste ends up in New Zealand landfills. Much of this is timber treated with copper, chromium and arsenic (CCA). But what if the solution isn’t about managing this waste better, but preventing it altogether?A Marlborough sawmill is showing how the industry can break this cycle by combining arsenic free timber treatment, with renewable energy generation. It’s an approach that turns the traditional waste-to-landfill model on its head. “New Zealand’s construction and agricultural sectors have been grappling with this issue for decades,” says Sam Lees, Sales Manager at OneFortyOne Kaituna Sawmill. “With MCA treatment, we have a practical solution that works for everyone.” The shift centres on micronised copper azole (MCA) treatment – a copper-based preservative without arsenic. MCA timber is a tried and true solution that offers the same resistance to decay and mould as traditional treatments but opens up possibilities that CCA never could. Most significantly, it can be safely burned in Kaituna’s biomass boilers. This changes everything – it means timber offcuts and end-of-life MCA timber are now being repurposed in a boiler that runs on wood to create renewable energy. “Because MCA doesn’t contain arsenic, it changes the whole equation around disposal,” Lees explains. “Material that would’ve ended up in landfill now gets a second life, helping power our operations.” The sawmill has resource consent to include MCA-treated timber waste in its biomass fuel – combining it with sawdust and other wood residues to generate energy for kiln drying, creating a closed-loop, circular economy approach. Local builder Mark Thompson has seen the difference firsthand. “We’ve been using Kaituna’s MCA timber on decks and outdoor projects, and it’s really changed how we think about waste,” he says. “As builders, we generate a lot of timber offcuts, and honestly, it never felt great just dumping it all in landfill.” The environmental benefits have become a selling point with clients. “Now I can tell families that our waste timber goes back to Kaituna and gets turned into clean energy instead of rotting in a tip somewhere,” Thompson says. The practical benefits matter too, he says. “The offcuts get collected at no extra cost to us or the client. It’s doing the right thing environmentally without any financial penalty, which is pretty rare in construction these days,” Thompson says. The shift is already making waves in the viticulture industry, where approximately 500,000 vineyard posts are replaced in Marlborough each year, many of which are currently dumped in landfills. Beyond vineyards, MCA-treated timber is gaining traction in residential and commercial construction. It qualifies for points under green building certifications like Green Star and Homestar, giving builders, developers and homeowners an alternative that doesn’t compromise efficacy or performance. For Lees, the next step is about shifting industry and consumer demand. “We’re seeing more builders and merchants asking about alternative timber options,” he says. “It’s about recognising that every project decision makes a difference – for our customers, our communities, and the environment.” More >> Source & image credit: OneFortyOne  New Forests A$600 million fund acquires beef farms
New Forests, a global investment manager of nature-based real
assets and natural capital strategies, has announced that its Australia
New Zealand Landscapes and Forestry Fund (ANZLAFF) has acquired
approximately half of McPhee Beef Farms.McPhee Beef Farms is a large-scale, highly improved beef breeding operation located near Yarrowitch and Walcha in the New England region of New South Wales. Aggregated over 30 years by the McPhee family, it is home to the Maria River Cattle Company Angus herd which, crossed with fullblood Wagyu bulls, is a major supplier of high-quality F1 Wagyu. Covering approximately 8,400 hectares of freehold land across two main holdings, Benditi Aggregation and Glen Eagle, the McPhee Beef Farms will be known as Benditi Pastoral Company. Existing staff and management are being retained under a new management company formed by the vendor to provide ongoing property management and maintain existing business relationships for Benditi Pastoral Company. The asset will be managed by New Forests with specialist agricultural expertise provided by its related entity New Agriculture, using a whole of landscape approach to optimise the investment returns with the potential for registering carbon projects and introducing more regenerative agriculture practices. New Forests will also look at management practices to reduce emissions across farm vehicles and review energy requirements from renewable sources. David Shelton, Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand, and Global Head of Investments at New Forests said, "The McPhee asset is a quality business which aligns perfectly with our whole of landscape approach where we can position investors to benefit from the best use of the landscape, while combining additional revenue streams such as carbon and biodiversity.” McPhee Beef Farms is ANZLAFF’s fourth Australian investment, following the acquisition of three sites in the central tablelands of New South Wales, which were acquired as part of the Fund’s Australian greenfields aggregation program. In January 2025, New Forests announced the final close of ANZLAFF (its fourth fund focussed on Australia and New Zealand), raising approximately A$600 million from institutional investors from across Asia Pacific and Europe including Australia’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Japan’s Kyushu Electric Power, Germany’s BVK and Sweden’s AP2. In April 2025, New Forests announced New Agriculture was looking to raise A$750 million for the New Agriculture Landscape Opportunities Fund (NALOF) from institutional investors. This strategy takes a similar approach to the previous four funds, but with agriculture as the core focus, rather than forestry. The transaction is subject to Foreign Investment Review Board approval. More >> Source & image credit: New Forests  New Zealand’s first FSC® forest walkIn Aotearoa New Zealand’s Woodhill Forest, just 50km northwest of Auckland, the FSC Forest Walk brought together retailers, manufacturers and supply chain leaders from across the local FSC network to see responsible forestry in practice.Hosted by FSC certified forest managers Manulife Investment Management and Matariki Forests, together with landowners Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara, the event highlighted how FSC certification safeguards biodiversity, upholds Indigenous Peoples rights and cultural values, supports workers and local communities and delivers certified materials to local and international markets. Attendees represented a cross-section of New Zealand’s FSC community, from chain of custody certificate holders such as Opal ANZ, Visy, Abodo Wood and OfficeMax to Promotional Licence Holders including Mitre 10 NZ, The Warehouse, Bunnings NZ, NXP Limited and Woolworths Group (Countdown), with the New Zealand Green Building Council also in attendance. Bringing these organisations together for the first FSC Forest Walk in New Zealand created a unique forum for connection across the supply chain and underscored the growing momentum behind FSC in the region.  The day began with a pōwhiri led by Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara. Guests were welcomed with waiata (song) and the sharing of kai (food), an expression of manaakitanga, the Māori value of hospitality and care. Malcom Paterson, Chief Executive of Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara, then spoke about the land and his people’s enduring relationship with it, emphasising its deep and longstanding place within the cultural landscape of Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara. He explained that under Crown ownership, Woodhill Forest was established to stabilise the vast drifting sand dunes which were encroaching on agricultural land, with planting beginning in the 1930s continuing through to the 1980s. Following the 2013 Treaty of Waitangi settlement, the land was returned to Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara, who retain ownership today and have partnered with Manulife Investment Management and Matariki Forests to manage the plantations. Integral to the management of Woodhill Forest is its function as a multi-use landscape, where recreation and community use coexist with forestry operations. Horse riding, mountain biking, tree climbing and paintball take place among the plantation trees, while its forest scenery has provided striking settings for major films and television series including The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Attendees were introduced to the recreational side of the forest at Tree Adventures and Woodhill Mountain Bike Park, where the forest managers outlined how they support public access and community use of the forest. They explained the importance of responsible forest management in balancing recreation and safety while maintaining social licence and engaging with stakeholders. Hosted in partnership with Manulife Investment Management, Matariki Forests and Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara. More >> Source & image credit: FSC Australia and New Zealand Jobs
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and one to end the week on... Yes... it's real
For the worm-lovers out there... Officials ensure fair play in worm charming competitions. Roles include the Worm Master, Official Cheat, Old Father Worm Charming, and the International Judge. Check it out on the International Festival of Wormcharming website.
And on that note, enjoy your weekend. Cheers.  Brand PartnersOur Partners & Sponsors Friday Offcuts is made possible through the generous support of the following companies.
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