The Timber Development Association of the United Kingdom (TDUK) has alerted its members to the ongoing problem of illegal imports of conflict timber from Russia and Belarus. The organization urges its members to be vigilant and take necessary precautions to avoid unintentionally sourcing wood products associated with these areas. TDUK highlighted the alarming practice of Russian birch plywood and other conflict timber being smuggled to the market through third countries.
According to TDUK, although the European Union and the United Kingdom have banned the import of wood products from certain regions of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, the report shows that these materials are still entering countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom. TDUK said that in order to circumvent the ban, nefarious entities disguise the origin of Russian birch plywood and other conflict timber by falsely claiming to be from regions such as Vietnam, Asia and China.
TDUK highlighted the importance of due diligence in verifying the country of origin of wood products, especially when dealing with new suppliers. The organization advises its members to exercise caution when coming across offers for birch plywood labeled "from the Far East" or from countries such as Turkey, Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan.