Forestry Commission
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How woodland creation can help you generate income
Woodland creation can help you to diversify your business and generate reliable revenue streams, whilstdelivering environmental benefits that support your land management goals, nature, and society.
Harvesting trees for timber enables you to use your woodland as a valuable crop. Sawlogs can be soldfor construction materials or furniture, while small roundwood can be sold or processed and used forwoodfuel for your own use, saving you money.
By registering newly created woodland with the Woodland Carbon Code and the WoodlandCarbon Guarantee, you can sell carbon units to the government or on the private market from as earlyas five years after planting, and help to offset your business carbon emissions.
Combining trees with crops or livestock can increase productivity and lead to more sustainable yields anda higher quality output fetching a higher price.
Its not just animals and crops that benefit from trees, people pay to enjoy restorative woodland settings forrecreation and sporting activities including cycling, glamping, and game shoots.
With financial incentives available, tax reliefs, and expert support on hand planting the right tree in the rightplace, for the right reasons, can benefit you, your land,and your bottom line.
Why act now?
The farming and land management sector is changing. Growing environmental pressures are altering the way we look at our landscapes, and shifts in farming subsidies mean that many farmers and land managers are reviewing their land use models. Influenced by global factors, prices for feed, fertiliser and fuel are in flux, impacting cash flow and every business bottom line. In this context, business diversification to seek alternative sources of revenue is of growing importance.
This is where trees can help. As well as providing direct sources of income, such as through the sale of timber or carbon credits, they can also help cut costs. Shelterbelt woodland can decrease winter feed costs by protecting livestock from adverse weather conditions, reducing how much feed is consumed.1 Trees can decrease the amount of fertiliser needed on fields by enriching soils and reducing nutrient losses caused by water run-off. Growing trees for fuel can power biomass boilers to heat your farm buildings.
Financial support and expert advice is also available through the Forestry Commission and our partners.
Grow your income through woodland creation
Generating income is dependent on a variety of factors including the size, type and composition of your woodland, as well as your overall objectives and local markets. Before planning your new woodland, its important to research local markets to understand current demand for wood products and how those markets may develop into the future.
Woodland creation can boost your business revenue in a variety of ways:
Carbon
Registering your new woodland with the Woodland Carbon Code (WCC) is your first step towards generating revenue from the sale of official carbon units for every tonne of carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestered by your woodland. Carbon credits can be sold to the government through the Woodland Carbon Guarantee, or sold on the open market as early as five years after planting, as long as your woodland is validated and verified through the WCC. Alternatively, you could look to offset your business carbon emissions to meet the rising demand for net zero supply chains.
Between 2019 to 2021, the number of companies announcing net zero targets doubled. There has been a steep rise in the total value of woodland carbon transactions and the value of individual units, with further demand for woodland carbon units set to increase.
Woodland creation projects can generate a generous return, with carbon prices ranging from 10 to 30+ per unit. Typically, woodland projects can produce in the region of 100 units/ha to over 500 units/ha generating anywhere from 1,000/ha to 15,000+/ha through the sale of carbon units via the WCC over the same period. There are different factors that can affect your carbon unit prices and more information on this can be found in our Woods and Carbon fact sheet.
Explore how the Blenheim Estate converted low-grade, unprofitable agricultural land into new woodland to sequester carbon, and support nature and the wider environment.
Timber
Growing timber to sell to the commercial timber trade can generate a reliable short or long-term revenue stream for your business. Planting and harvesting fast-growing trees that can be coppiced or felled and restocked on a frequent cycle can result in a quicker turnover, but may be less profitable over time than slower-growing higher value hardwood timber from broadleaf species. The sale price for different types of wood can vary and can be influenced by local demand. Depending on your site and tree species, you could look to harvest lower-quality timber from your new woodland for fenceposts or woodfuel as early as 15-20 years after planting.
The UK boasts a strong forestry industry, with well-established markets and specialist sawmills and processors that can cater for an array of timber types.1 The best quality timber can be sold for sawlogs and converted into construction materials, while small roundwood timber can be sold for fencing, pulp and chipwood products. Timber used for framing or internal wood features can be processed from high quality hardwood logs any lower quality hardwood can be sold to the firewood market.
There is a demand for premium quality wood for high value niche markets that produce anything from ship masts to bespoke film set props. There could also be niche markets that already exist in your locality, often requiring wood from all parts of a tree for floristry materials, small handicrafts, and decorative materials. Its best to research the local demand for specific wood products to highlight any lucrative markets that can inform your woodland creation objectives.
Timber prices
Timber values have risen by 70% from 2016-2021.3 There are many factors that can influence timber prices, including your sites access conditions, the q