We all love wooden furniture, not only is wood one of the most traditional materials that we use in our home, but it is also one of the most natural and in turn, the most beautiful.

For hundreds of years in the United Kingdom we have been stocking up on some of the most exquisite furniture on sale; the time however has now come to a point where we need to start being careful about what furniture we buy, and making sure that it comes from sustainable sources.

As the need to protect the environment deepens, the need to buy from sustainable forests is getting even greater.

But what are sustainable forests?

Sustainable forest management (otherwise known as SFM) as defined by the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe as:

"The stewardship and use of forests and forest lands in a way, and at a rate, that maintains their biodiversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, vitality and their potential to fulfil, now and in the future, relevant ecological, economic and social functions, at local, national, and global levels, and that does not cause damage to other ecosystems." [1]

Although you may think that a sustainable forest may just comprise of one particular tree, this is a great misconception as a sustainable forest will contain a wide range of trees of different ages; making sure that the eco system of the forest is maintained.

How does the life cycle of a sustainable forest work?

  1. Seedlings are grown in greenhouses until they are strong enough to be grown in forests.
  2. At five years old the seedlings are transported from the green houses where they have been grown from seeds.
  3. At ten years old, the trees are now in their natural environment and every five years they are thinned out, giving the chance for other trees to make progress in the area.
  4. After twenty five years of growing, the trees are almost ready for felling. Their growth will have been monitored carefully and between twenty-five and thirty years, they are nearing the time for felling
  5. After thirty years, the trees are felled and the wood is sent to the mill. The area left by the trees is open for planting of seedlings and the cycle starts again.

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But why are sustainable forests so important?

We all know that on a global scale, forests are important for the general health of the planet and the fight against global warming, but on a smaller scale, sustainable forests provide the basis for local economies to thrive.

Anybody who knows about the economic deprivation in the State of Washington in the 90s' will know the poverty that logging provides once that all the trees have been felled.

The biggest bonus of supporting sustainable forests however is the knowledge that you shall also be supporting the eco system and wildlife in the local area.

Rainforests in particular cover roughly 2% of the world and consequently house up to half of the animals on the planet; sustainable forests sustain that environment and the animals within them.

Sustainability at Oak Furniture UK

Here at Oak Furniture UK we endeavour to ensure that all our furniture is from sustainable sources. While this is not always possible, we are always looking for 'greener' supplies and more sustainable sources.