Brussels, 11/07/2006 (Agence Europe) - According to Eurostat figures which appeared on 16 June 2006, the production of roundwood in the EU has been increasing for the last fifteen years, reaching 376 million cubic metres (m3) in 2004. The EU-25 accounts for 11% of the world's roundwood production, behind the United States (14%) and ahead of India (9%), China (9%), Brazil (7%), Canada (6%) and Russia (5%). Two thirds of world production consists of non-coniferous wood, especially tropical wood. This ratio is inversed in the northern hemisphere where the EU is in direct competition with the US, Canada and Russia.
The EU's main producers, in order of importance, Sweden (over 65 million m3), Finland, Germany, France and Poland, account for 67% of the EU-25 production. Roundwood production consists mainly of coniferous wood (about 75%). In terms of volume, the main producers of non-coniferous wood are, in descending order, France, Germany, Poland, Finland, Spain and Italy. The Mediterranean countries (France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Cyprus and Malta) produce practically equal amounts of coniferous and non-coniferous wood, accounting for about 13% of EU coniferous wood production and approximately 35% of non-coniferous production. With the exception of France, production remains low (below 15 million m3). These are also the countries which are most affected by fires.