Forest products and services

Legal and Sustainable Wood Programme

Micro, small and medium-scale forest enterprises

Sustainable Wood for a Sustainable World

Sustainable forest-based bioeconomy approaches

News

FAO and Bauhaus Earth report highlights wood’s role in cutting construction emissions

25/06/2026

Greater use of sustainably sourced wood could help reposition the construction sector from a major greenhouse gas emitter to a driver of climate change mitigation, according to a new report from FAO and Bauhaus Earth.

Vienna Call for Action urges progress on sustainable forest-based bioeconomy

26/02/2026

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) welcomed a call today for urgent action to accelerate progress towards a sustainable forest-based bioeconomy.

Global forest products trade and production show signs of recovery in 2024

24/12/2025

After a sharp decline in 2023, the global forest products sector saw signs of stabilization in 2024.

Publications

FAO Forestry Paper 181: Climate change for forest policy-makers

2018

The critical role of forests in climate change mitigation and adaptation is now widely recognized. Forests contribute significantly to climate change mitigation through their carbon sink and carbon storage functions.

FAO Forestry Paper 180: Making forest concessions in the tropics work to achieve the 2030 Agenda

2018

The decision to develop a set of voluntary guidelines for forest concessions in the tropics, in the context of the 2030 Agenda, stems from the need to advance the implementation of sustainable forest management (SFM).

The role of forest producer organizations in social protection

2018

This study reviews the literature on the provision of social protection by forest producer organizations, with a specific focus on their role and practices in this regard, the types of benefits they provide, the factors that may enhance or hinder the provision of benefits and the opportunities for taking advantage of these organizations to expand social protection coverage in marginalized communities.

Videos

Communicating forestry innovation at FAO

24/10/2025

From fibre to packaging, building materials & even waterproof sinks - innovation in forestry has been on show in Rome, at the From Seeds to Food...

International Day of Forests 2024: New solutions for a better world

21/03/2024

Innovation is unlocking the forests’ long-kept secrets and allowing us to use trees in ways we never imagined possible.

Sustainable wood: The manifesto

06/12/2022

Over the centuries, we’ve moved away from using wood as a building material, at great cost to the planet.

Sustainable wood: Climate-friendly cities

01/12/2022

Find more videos on the FAO Forestry YouTube playlist

Sustainable wood: Housing a growing population

27/10/2022

A growing population means more buildings to fit everyone. By 2030, we will have to house an additional 3 billion people. Using wood from sustainably...

Sustainable Wood: Building the future

13/10/2022

Wood can be a material of the future, helping to build a bio-economy for the planet's health and economic recovery. Durable “cross-laminated timber”...

Forests and sustainable production and consumption

21/04/2022

For millions of people across the world, wood helps provide safe drinking water, food and shelter - but wood can do much more and is a renewable resource...

Is your toothbrush made of plastic or wood?

21/03/2022

Replacing more of the plastic things we use every day with wood-based products from sustainably managed forests can help combat climate change and achieve...

Sustainable forests: a powerful ally against climate change

24/02/2021

Climate change is subjecting our planet to unsustainable pressures. Forests and trees trap and store carbon as they grow – standing at the frontline...