2000 Annual Report for FS00-109
Marketing Timber After Adding Value Through the Use of One-Person Sawmills and Solar Kilns
Summary
Small producers in southern Appalachia typically have some acreage in wood lots. With the right management techniques and the right equipment these wood lots can produce timber at a sustainable rate. Adding value at the point of production rather than selling timber on the stump to commercial sawmills or exporters would give these small producers another economically viable crop. The current marketing system, however, does not have a place for these small producers. There are 10 million craftspeople in the U.S. currently, but making the connection between these professional and hobbyist woodworkers and small value-added timber producers is a challenge.
The goal of Michael Best’s Producer Grant project is to investigate the marketing system that is currently in place and determine if there are alternatives to this system. He wants to see if these alternatives might be beneficial to smaller producers who add value to timber before it leaves the farm. Some of the marketing avenues to be explored are internet marketing (directly to end users, including building contractors and cabinet makers), cooperative marketing, auction marketing, and marketing sustainable timber products. Through surveying and personal interviews he hopes to develop information on wood product consumers’ needs and their product characteristic preferences, purchasing habits, sources of product information and the best methods to reach them regarding new products. He will also determine what small producers need to do in order to market value-added timber products directly to the end consumer.