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Wood and Paper Exports and Imports 2023

Imports of wood and paper products were €2.5 billion in 2023

Online ISSN: 2811-5511
CSO statistical release, , 11am

Key Findings

  • In 2023, exports of wood and paper products were worth €1 billion, while imports of these products were worth €2.5 billion.

  • Exports of Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels were valued at €338 million in 2023 which represented 33% of the total value of exports of wood and paper products. Exports of Secondary Paper Products at €223 million accounted for a further 22% in 2023 while exports of Coniferous Sawnwood in 2023 were €150 million.

  • Imports of Secondary Paper Products were valued at €878 million in 2023 which represented 35% of the total value of imports in 2023. Secondary Wood Products accounted for a further 28% or €715 million.

  • Exports of Coniferous Sawnwood rose by 176% from 212 thousand cubic metres in 1995 to 586 thousand cubic metres in 2023. Exports of Coniferous Industrial Roundwood increased by 122% from 207 thousand cubic metres in 1995 to 459 thousand cubic metres in 2023.

Statistician's Comment

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (15 April 2025) published Wood and Paper Exports and Imports for 2023.

Commenting on the release Niamh Shanahan, Statistician in the Environment Division of the CSO, noted that: "Imports and exports of wood and paper products were valued at €2.5 billion and €1 billion respectively in 2023. Over the period 1995 to 2023, there was a substantial shift from exporting forest log towards processing the log removals from forests into products such as Sawnwood and, Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels before exporting them.

In recent years, export volumes of Coniferous Industrial Roundwood, Coniferous Sawnwood, Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels, and Recovered Paper have exceeded imports of these products.

In contrast import volumes of Wood Fuel, Pulp, Paper & Paperboard, Secondary Wood Products and Secondary Paper Products have exceeded export volumes."

Value of Wood and Paper Exports and Imports

In 2023, Ireland exported €1 billion worth of wood and paper products, while imports of these products totalled €2.5 billion (See Table A).

In 2023, Secondary Paper Products made up 35% of total wood and paper imports, valued at €878 million. Secondary Wood Products accounted for another 28%, worth €715 million (See Figure 1 and Table 1B).

Exports of Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels represented 33% of total wood and paper exports in 2023, with a value of €338 million. Exports of Secondary Paper Products and Coniferous Sawnwood accounted for a further 22% and 15% of exports value respectively (See Figure 2 and Table 1A).

Table A: Value of Wood and Paper Exports and Imports 2018-2023
€billion
YearExportsImports
20180.791.76
20190.791.91
20200.751.79
20211.052.09
20221.212.71
20231.032.52
ImportsValue
Coniferous Roundwood27.881
Coniferous Sawnwood105.79
Veneer Sheets and Wood-based Panels207.334
Paper and Paperboard393.326
Secondary Wood Products715.433
Secondary Paper Products878.415
ExportsValue
Coniferous Roundwood31.212
Coniferous Sawnwood150.087
Veneer Sheets and Wood-based Panels338.298
Paper and Paperboard38.478
Secondary Wood Products149.46
Secondary Paper Products223.42
Table 1A Value of Exports of Wood and Paper Products 1995-2023 (€000)

Table 1B Value of Imports of Wood and Paper Products 1995-2023 (€000)

Volume of Wood and Paper Exports and Imports

The highest exports volume in 2023 was Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels at 677 thousand cubic metres, followed by Coniferous Sawnwood at 586 thousand cubic metres and Coniferous Industrial Roundwood at 459 thousand cubic metres (See Table 2).

Table 2 Exports and Imports of Wood and Paper Products 2023

In recent years, export volumes of Coniferous Industrial Roundwood, Coniferous Sawnwood, Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels, and Recovered Paper have exceeded imports of these products, while import volumes of Wood Fuel, Pulp, Paper & Paperboard, Secondary Wood Products and Secondary Paper Products have exceeded export volumes (See Tables 3A and 3C).

Table 3A Volume of Exports of Wood and Paper Products 1995-2023 (Cubic metres)

Table 3B Volume of Exports of Wood and Paper Products 1995-2023 (Tonnes)

Table 3C Volume of Imports of Wood and Paper Products 1995-2023 (Cubic metres)

Table 3D Volume of Imports of Wood and Paper Products 1995-2023 (Tonnes)

Wood and Paper Exports and Imports by Product

Exports of Coniferous Sawnwood were at 586 thousand cubic metres in 2023. This is a 175% increase from 212 thousand cubic metres of Coniferous Sawnwood exported in 1995. Imports of Coniferous Sawnwood were at 283 thousand cubic metres in 2023 (See Table 4B, Figure 3 and Figure 4).

Exports of Coniferous Industrial Roundwood were at 459 thousand cubic metres in 2023. This is a 122% increase from 207 thousand cubic metres in 1995. Imports of Coniferous Industrial Roundwood were at 222 thousand cubic metres in 2023 (See Table 4A, Figure 3 and Figure 4).

Table 4A Exports and Imports of Coniferous Industrial Roundwood 1995-2023

Table 4B Exports and Imports of Coniferous Sawnwood 1995-2023

ImportsConiferous SawnwoodConiferous Roundwood
1995258.8528.265
1996280.80728.78
1997350.31172.939
1998414.83278.32
1999437.81472.702
2000532.51988.694
2001444.893130.929
2002532.358182.255
2003690.684235.321
2004681.36287.299
2005747.42321.045
2006785.775231.721
2007625.971239.618
2008364.27304.096
2009208.409202.893
2010213.31592.906
2011166.71298.383
2012128.641194.619
2013120.849243.201
2014173.757259.681
2015203.16302.689
2016207.243314.957
2017235.916378.906
2018311.902302.737
2019440.153278.619
2020394.58252.748
2021415.029295.83
2022327.288177.421
2023282.962221.77
ExportsConiferous SawnwoodConiferous Roundwood
1995212.332206.751
1996219.723351.118
1997231.823234.167
1998193.072259.021
1999190.398280.035
2000217.33184.818
2001259.281364.641
2002383.736286.839
2003403.855301.906
2004410.986273.134
2005354.376352.327
2006304.458327.749
2007301.013312.938
2008315.376273.252
2009458.858261.367
2010535.115216.224
2011498.637185.133
2012570.541165.472
2013638.372225.894
2014653.701281.309
2015626.422269.422
2016722.66323.195
2017724.091343.416
2018685.4374.827
2019639.997549.963
2020662.373391.726
2021676.883443.807
2022689.705470.688
2023586.399459.19

Exports and Imports of Other Biomass were at 243 and 289 thousand cubic metres respectively in 2023 (See Table 4C and Figure 5).

Table 4C Exports and Imports of Other Biomass 1995-2023

Other BiomassImportsExports
199524.008101.292
19962.38101.168
19972.36255.23
199830.05765.505
199936.30191.596
200051.32778.95
200197.59888.748
2002127.09884.081
2003131.77276.783
2004116.81852.729
2005203.46246.648
200668.7150.333
2007160.69260.173
200851.26463.165
200930.08144.129
201036.82358.019
201122.088115.432
201216.096118
201334.21433.058
201411.8118.23
20159.46826.49
201639.80533.698
201791.34176.735
201839.086111.535
201968.881118.084
2020148.633119.098
2021112.08378.902
202238.541162.667
2023288.929242.942

Imports of Non-Coniferous Industrial Roundwood, Wood Fuel and Non-Coniferous Sawnwood were at 7, 50 and 35 thousand cubic metres respectively in 2023 (See Tables 4D, 4E and 4F).

Exports of Veneer Sheets & Wood-Based Panels and exports of Recovered Paper were at 677 thousand cubic metres and 435 thousand tonnes respectively in 2023 (See Tables 4G and 4I). Imports of Secondary Paper Products and Paper and imports of Paperboard were at 370 thousand tonnes and 327 thousand tonnes respectively in 2023 (See Tables 4J and 4L). 

Table 4D Exports and Imports of Non-Coniferous Industrial Roundwood 1995-2023

Table 4E Exports and Imports of Wood Fuel 1995-2023

Table 4F Exports and Imports of Non-Coniferous Sawnwood 1995-2023

Table 4G Exports and Imports of Veneer Sheets and Wood-based Panels 1995-2023

Table 4H Exports and Imports of Pulp 1995-2023

Table 4I Exports and Imports of Recovered Paper 1995-2023

Table 4J Exports and Imports of Paper and Paperboard 1995-2023

Table 4K Exports and Imports of Secondary Wood Products 1995-2023

Table 4L Exports and Imports of Secondary Paper Products 1995-2023

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