Global trade in wood chips has more than doubled in the past 20 years, reaching 30 million tons in 2007, according to the Wood Resource Quarterly.
The trend is the result of tighter wood supply in close proximity to many pulp mills in the northern hemisphere, higher costs for locally sourced wood fibre and lower cost alternatives in new supply regions.
In the long term, the trade of wood chips is expected to decline as more pulp capacity is added in regions with fast-growing plantations.