What Area of Plantations Might the World Require?   

Assuming a high average yield and the use of productive land, an extra 100 million hectares of additional plantations will be needed to supply two billion m3 annually – an area equal to that of Nigeria. This would require much of the world's land suitable for plantations, surplus to food production and which is not already forested. This creates an urgency for planting due to the time required between the plantation’s initial establishment and final harvest.

Fuelwood and some pulpwood plantations can be grown in under ten years but most industrial plantations require at least two to three decades to mature.  In the case of Floresteca,  the production cycle of teak has been carefully developed using ongoing Research and Development in its Bioteca labs, to allow it to reach maturity in a period of 20 – 25 years, as opposed to 80 or more years in its ‘natural’ habitat of Burma.

If the demand for timber shifts to one of sustainable and renewable sources, as the evidence suggests it will, this will decrease the demand for illegal or unsustainable wood. Thus the need to establish well-managed and sustainable plantations should increase, so relieving the pressure on what remains of the world’s natural, primary forests.  Consequently, plantations have the potential to offer an environmentally friendly, renewable solution to the world’s demand for wood and a fantastic investment opportunity.