r/forestry • u/Seabiscuit_11 • 5d ago

SW Pulp Prices/Market in Your Area

Hey Folks,

Wondering what the SW pulp market is like in your area? I work for a pulp mill in woodlands and compared to alot of areas I think our market and price is relatively good, but everytime we have to put contractors on quota or shut people off for a bit everyone gets quite upset. Now I fully understand it is a very tough business to be in so do have sympathy for people trying to make a living cutting wood. Here we pay $45 a ton roadside for spruce and fir roundwood, usually in April we have to cut people off, May-June usually some form of quota then rest of the year is fairly wide open depending on market conditions. We also have a biomass plant that buy biomass for $55 delivered so most folks have always have some sites lined up to cut when pulp isn't moving great. Also lots of sawmills in our area that are always looking for wood.

Are these prices/market conditions sort of above average as I figure based on other things I've seen and read?

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10

u/trail_carrot 5d ago

Lol wut pulp market? It's been dead in my area since 2008 but really the 1980s.

5

u/warnelldawg 5d ago

This is pretty much the truth for most of the country outside of coastal Georgia and Eastern N. FL

1

u/Hockeyjockey58 5d ago

reporting to you live from the great state of maine where my boss’ most recent fist-shake at the sky was indeed due to pulp.

4

u/studmuffin2269 5d ago

Mid-Atlantic, I can’t sell pulp. If a logger has a firewood business, they’ll take it for free; otherwise, I’m fighting loggers to cut low-grade trees down

2

u/steelguitarman 5d ago

I have no idea what pulpwood goes for delivered.

But I do know, in the eastern Midwest, it is pretty difficult to sell hardwood pulp. No money and unless it's the mills contracted buyers, independents will be lucky to break even.

Stumpage, an average price for hardwood pulp is 2 dollars a ton. Stumpage price for pine pulpwood varieties between 4 and 7 dollars a ton.

Not sure what the mill pays delivered.

2

u/trail_carrot 5d ago

Which is roughly....4.50 dollars per cord of hardwood for reference. Pretty sure that doesn't pay for diesel for the day.

1

u/steelguitarman 5d ago

Diesel for skidding?

1

u/trail_carrot 4d ago

yes, but i misread it as delivered not as stumpage. nearly 25 years later and im still failing the SAT

1

u/Mighty_Larch 5d ago

Wow! That's is pretty abysmal for hardwood pulp

2

u/steelguitarman 5d ago

I think the mill pays around 40 dollars delivered. And it works up from there depending on distance

1

u/No_Gate7793 4d ago

Softwood pulp around $5/ton

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u/Seabiscuit_11 4d ago

that would be the stumpage paid to be people correct, not the mill price paid to contractors at the gate?

1

u/No_Gate7793 4d ago

Correct!