IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/wbk/wbrwps/1479.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Is there a commercial case for tropical timber certification?

Author

Listed:
  • Varangis, Panayotis N.
  • Crossley, Rachel
  • Braga, C

Abstract

The authors estimate the potential commercial benefits that tropical timber producing countries could enjoy by adopting timber certification schemes. Such benefits are crucial for encouraging the supply of certified timber. Timber certification is a reality: various countries and organizations have launched initiatives for it. The initial response among producing countries was less than positive, but some have come to realize its potential benefits and have begun to adopt timber certification schemes. Tropical timber trade accounts for only a small fraction of tropical timber production, and most of that trade is concentrated among developing countries in Asia and Japan - markets where demand for certified timber is currently weak. Only a small part of the trade reaches the eco-sensitive markets of Europe and the United States, where there is demand for certified timber. Developing countries can benefit commercially from timber certification in two ways: through the "green premium" (consumers' willingness to pay a premium for certified timber" and by averting losses of market share in the tropical timber market from not having timber certified. Based on surveys, on discussions with nongovernmental organizations, on market participants and analysts, and on estimates of price elasticity, the authors develop a scenario for estimating the potential commercial benefits from adopting timber certification. Under this scenario, benefits would not exceed US$500 million a year (roughly 4 percent of all tropical-timber-related revenues earned by developing countries). Timber certification is not expected to provide significant commercial benefits to developing countries in the near future. But timber certification could provide significant rents to individual firms that develop market niche strategies. And producing countries that pursue certification may enjoy longer-term social, economic, and environmental benefits by adopting the better forest management practices required for timber certification.

Suggested Citation

  • Varangis, Panayotis N. & Crossley, Rachel & Braga, C, 1995. "Is there a commercial case for tropical timber certification?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1479, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:1479
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/773881468130810687/pdf/multi-page.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Aaditya Mattoo & Harsha V. Singh, 1994. "Eco‐Labelling: Policy Considerations," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(1), pages 53-65, February.
    2. Varangis, Panayotis N. & Primo Braga, Carlos A. & Kenji Takeuchi, 1993. "Tropical timber trade policies : what impact will eco-labeling have?," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1156, The World Bank.
    3. Ravenswaay, Eileen O. van & Hoehn, John P., 1991. "Consumer Willingness to Pay for Reducing Pesticide Residues in Food: Results of a Nationwide Survey," Staff Paper Series 201044, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kollert, Walter & Lagan, Peter, 2007. "Do certified tropical logs fetch a market premium?: A comparative price analysis from Sabah, Malaysia," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 9(7), pages 862-868, April.
    2. van Soest, D.P. & Jepma, C., 1997. "Certification and tropical deforestation : Micro monitoring without macro conditions?," Other publications TiSEM 08cd0fd1-f5e5-4054-96a7-b, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    3. van der Loos, Hendrik Z. Adriaan & Kalfagianni, Agni & Biermann, Frank, 2018. "Global aspirations, regional variation? Explaining the global uptake and growth of forestry certification," Journal of Forest Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(C), pages 41-50.
    4. Markku Simula, 1999. "Trade and Environmental Issues in Forest Production," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 25678, Inter-American Development Bank.
    5. Simula, Markku, 1999. "Trade and Environmental Issues in Forest Production," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 2995, Inter-American Development Bank.
    6. Jared J. Hardner & Richard Rice, 1999. "Rethinking Forest Resource Use Contracts in Latin America," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 25578, Inter-American Development Bank.
    7. Thiele, Rainer & Wiebelt, Manfred, 1996. "Tropenwaldmanagement: Ein Balanceakt zwischen Schutz und Raubbau," Kiel Discussion Papers 282, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    8. Eduard Niesten & Richard Rice, 2004. "Gestion durable des forêts et incitations directes à la conservation de la biodiversité," Revue Tiers Monde, Programme National Persée, vol. 45(177), pages 129-152.
    9. McNichol, Jason, 2000. "Contesting Governance in the Global Marketplace: A Sociological Assessment of British Efforts to Build New Markets for NGO-Certified Sustainable Wood Products," Center for Culture, Organizations and Politics, Working Paper Series qt6kk85053, Center for Culture, Organizations and Politics of theInstitute for Research on Labor and Employment, UC Berkeley.
    10. Daan Soest & Catrinus Jepma, 1997. "Certification of tropical timber and deforestation: Micro monitoring without macro conditions?," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 2(2), pages 319-336, June.
    11. Degnet, Mohammed B. & van der Werf, Edwin & Ingram, Verina & Wesseler, Justus, 2022. "Community perceptions: A comparative analysis of community participation in forest management: FSC-certified and non-certified plantations in Mozambique," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    12. Hardner, Jared J. & Rice, Richard, 1999. "Rethinking Forest Resource Use Contracts in Latin America," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 2992, Inter-American Development Bank.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Thiele, Rainer & Wiebelt, Manfred, 1996. "Tropenwaldmanagement: Ein Balanceakt zwischen Schutz und Raubbau," Kiel Discussion Papers 282, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    2. Alain Nadaï, 2001. "Consumer' sovereignty and policy issues in the development of product ecolabels," Post-Print halshs-00159973, HAL.
    3. Lisette Ibanez & Gilles Grolleau, 2008. "Can Ecolabeling Schemes Preserve the Environment?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 40(2), pages 233-249, June.
    4. Sedjo, Roger & Swallow, Stephen, 1999. "Eco-Labeling and the Price Premium," RFF Working Paper Series dp-00-04, Resources for the Future.
    5. Lohr, Luanne & Park, Timothy A., 1992. "Certification And Supply Response In The Organic Lettuce Market," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 17(2), pages 1-13, December.
    6. Shizuka Nishikawa, 2015. "Regulating Cournot Oligopoly with Environmental Externalities," Atlantic Economic Journal, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 43(4), pages 449-462, December.
    7. Bjorner, Thomas Bue & Hansen, L.G.Lars Garn & Russell, Clifford S., 2004. "Environmental labeling and consumers' choice--an empirical analysis of the effect of the Nordic Swan," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 411-434, May.
    8. Brécard, Dorothée, 2014. "Consumer confusion over the profusion of eco-labels: Lessons from a double differentiation model," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 64-84.
    9. Athearn, Kevin R., 2003. "Can Eco-Labeling Do More Harm Than Good? A Comparative Statics Analysis," 2003 Annual Meeting, February 1-5, 2003, Mobile, Alabama 35105, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    10. Gilles Grolleau & Lisette Ibanez & Naoufel Mzoughi & Mario Teisl, 2016. "Helping eco-labels to fulfil their promises," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(6), pages 792-802, August.
    11. Ravenswaay, Eileen O. van, 1993. "Research Needs in the Valuation of Food Safety and Nutrition," Staff Paper Series 201172, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    12. Monteiro, Jose-Antonio, 2010. "Eco-label Adoption in an Interdependent World," MPRA Paper 20268, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Hend Ghazzai & R Lahmandi-Ayed, 2018. "Ecolabels: Is More Information Better?," Working Papers hal-01877934, HAL.
    14. Swinton, Scott M. & Batie, Sandra S. & Schulz, Mary A., 1999. "Fqpa Implementation To Reduce Pesticide Residue Risks: Part Ii: Implementation Alternatives And Strategies," Staff Paper Series 11488, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    15. M. K. Haener & Martin K. Luckert, 1998. "Forest Certification: Economic Issues and Welfare Implications," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 24(s2), pages 83-94, May.
    16. Grannis, Jennifer L. & Hooker, Neal H. & Thilmany, Dawn D., 2000. "Consumer Preference For Specific Attributes In Natural Beef Products," 2000 Annual Meeting, June 29-July 1, 2000, Vancouver, British Columbia 36406, Western Agricultural Economics Association.
    17. Rasul Shams, 1995. "Eco-labelling and environmental policy efforts in developing countries," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Springer;ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics;Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), vol. 30(3), pages 143-149, May.
    18. Mika Kortelainen & Jibonayan Raychaudhuri & Beatrice Roussillon, 2016. "Effects Of Carbon Reduction Labels: Evidence From Scanner Data," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 54(2), pages 1167-1187, April.
    19. Cole, Matthew T. & Doremus, Jacqueline M. & Hamilton, Stephen F., 2021. "Import restrictions by eco-certification: Quantity effects on tropical timber production," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    20. Yeats, Alexander, 1996. "Export prospects of Middle Eastern countries : a post-Uruguay Round analysis," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1571, The World Bank.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:1479. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Roula I. Yazigi (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/dvewbus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.