COVID-19 Pandemic is Slowing Arkansas Timber Industry Recovery

Arkansas is a state with vast timber resources and harvests more than 24 million tons of timber per year. Arkansas is the 9th leading producer of timber in the U.S. The state’s economy is the most dependent economy in the South on timber and timber products. Nevertheless, Arkansas has a problem, a major problem, right now there is a glut of available timber. With the glut comes lower timber prices and with the lower prices it becomes increasingly less likely that landowners with timber stands are going to want to manage or harvest. The largest user of timber is residential housing and since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic housing have fallen 22%.