Timber and wood products: End exploitation by big business
25 Mar 2026External link
We use wood in all kinds of products, from fuel to furniture. But of all the resources imported into the UK, timber has the largest land footprint. Every year, in places like Brazil and China, an area larger than Scotland is being deforested just to meet the UK's demand.
The Trouble with Timber: Scrutinizing the Effectiveness of Sustainable Certification in Peninsular Malaysia
24 Mar 20263.72 MB PDF fileDirect download
Malaysia exported nearly USD5.4 billion of timber in 2024 from MTCS/PEFC‑certified forest management units in Peninsular Malaysia, but this report finds that weak, state‑level auditing and oversight severely undermine the credibility of those certifications. It finds that certified timber is at clear risk of links to Indigenous rights violations, large‑scale forest conversion (including in ecologically important and protected areas), ecosystem damage, and systemic transparency and complaint‑handling failures.
Tainted timber: appendix
24 Mar 2026311 kB PDF fileDirect download
Tainted Timber: Malaysian certification failures and UK imports - appendix
Protecting the environment, communities and workers in UK supply chains
24 Mar 2026245 kB PDF fileDirect download
This briefing summarises new research showing the failure of Malaysian timber certification and links to UK supply chains, how the UK regulatory regime should be improved and what MPs can do to help.
Tainted timber: Malaysian certification failures and UK imports
17 Mar 2026
Our new investigation, Tainted timber, reveals serious failings with how timber is being certified as sustainable in Peninsular Malaysia.