TTF’s David Hopkins talks timber supply on BBC News

The segment was taken from a wider interview Mr Hopkins did with reporters recently at the TTF’s base at the Building Centre in London.

Mr Hopkins told the BBC that suppliers were working hard to fulfill timber orders but were struggling in the face of huge demand.

He said the pandemic was the biggest reason causing problems on supply and demand but he also talked of the potential of climate change to affect timber supplies, citing increased outbreaks of forest pests such as beetles and wildfires in different regions, including North America.

Mr Hopkins also highlighted the facts that the UK was one of the largest timber importers in the world but had one of the lowest levels of forest cover in Europe.

The TTF predicts timber supply disruption will continue throughout 2021.

The BBC programme has resulted in follow up enquiries to the TTF from the Daily Mail, Telegraph and Sunday Times, as well as a BBC online article at BBCNews.

While the primary focus of the media attention has been on timber supply, the platform has also allowed the TTF to communicate the broader subjects of the role of timber as a low-carbon building material and its importance to the future of UK net zero construction.

The TTF’s Conversations about Climate Change virtual exhibition will be running until September. It is a specially commissioned design competition, exhibition, and event series providing a platform for urgent climate debates. For more information visit ClimateChange.