Lucy Bedry, Project Director – International Development & Trade
At the beginning of June, I attended Carrefour International du Bois in Nantes, where representatives from across the global timber supply chain came together to discuss some of the key opportunities and challenges facing the sector.
As part of the event, Timber Development UK (TDUK) and ATIBT hosted a roundtable discussion titled Tropical Timber: From Legality to Market Recognition. Bringing together perspectives from producer countries, importers, trade associations and the Broader Market Recognition Coalition (BMRC), the session explored how progress in legality assurance, traceability and sustainable forest management can be better recognised by markets and regulators.
While the discussion covered a wide range of topics, one theme emerged consistently throughout the session: producer countries have invested heavily in strengthening governance, transparency and sustainability, but market recognition has not always kept pace.
As TDUK Chief Executive David Hopkins noted during the discussion:
“How can we get the recognition in the market for the good efforts and the good work that is being done throughout the world by everyone involved in the forestry sector?”
That question sits at the heart of many current conversations around responsible timber trade.
Legality is More Than a Minimum Standard
One of the strongest messages from the discussion came from Richard Gyimah of the Ghana Forestry Commission, who provided an update on Ghana’s implementation of its national Legality Assurance System and FLEGT licensing programme.
Since issuing its first FLEGT licences in October 2025, Ghana has issued more than 650 licences covering approximately €80 million worth of timber exports to European markets. Yet Richard emphasised that legality should not be viewed simply as a basic compliance requirement.
“If a timber is coming from Ghana and we say this timber is legal, what does it mean? It means that timber has respected seven principles, met about 23 criteria, and then it can pass as legal timber. You will see that it goes beyond legality.”
This point was echoed by Emily Fripp, Team Leader of the BMRC Support Team, who reflected on how legality is often misunderstood.
“Legality is really difficult and really complicated… and as shown by Richard, to be legal means you’ve also ticked a huge number of other boxes along the way.”
The discussion highlighted that robust legality assurance systems represent decades of investment, collaboration and continuous improvement. They are not simply compliance mechanisms, but frameworks that help deliver stronger governance, transparency and accountability across the forestry sector.
Why Recognition Matters
As regulatory requirements continue to evolve, markets are increasingly seeking credible information that helps them understand the systems operating within producer countries and assess the progress already being made on the ground.
This is where the BMRC has an important role to play.
Established by six founding countries — Cameroon, Ghana, Guyana, Indonesia, Liberia and the Republic of Congo — the BMRC aims to improve market recognition of national forestry systems by increasing transparency and providing greater visibility of the work undertaken to strengthen governance, sustainability and legality.
As Emily explained during the discussion:
“Their vision is for a global marketplace that actually recognises all the work that’s gone on over the last few decades.”
Recognition is not only about acknowledging the end result. It is also about recognising the long-term process of reform and investment that underpins national forestry systems and helps build confidence among buyers, regulators and other stakeholders.
Looking Ahead
The discussion also explored the implications of evolving market requirements, including the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). While new regulations inevitably present challenges, they may also create opportunities for responsibly sourced tropical timber.
Tom van Loon of Interholco highlighted this potential, noting:
“I think in the long term this gives real market recognition to tropical timber. I think that’s very interesting for the market. It’s a positive development.”
One of the most encouraging aspects of the discussion was the shared recognition that progress is already happening. Producer countries continue to strengthen their systems, industry continues to invest in transparency and traceability, and markets are increasingly looking for credible ways to understand and assess that progress.
Carrefour International du Bois demonstrated that discussions are increasingly moving beyond whether responsible forest management matters and towards how existing achievements can be recognised, understood and rewarded.
As markets, regulations and sustainability expectations continue to evolve, initiatives such as the BMRC have an important role to play in helping bridge the gap between the work taking place on the ground and the information available to markets, ultimately supporting greater confidence in national forestry systems and the products they produce.
