1 Of all the wood harvested throughout the world, 42% goes to paper production. That number is expected to grow by more than 50% over the next 50 years.

2 The US pulp, paper and paperboard mill industry consists of approximately 270 companies with total combined annual revenue of more than $70 billion.

3 Industrialized nations, of which the United States and Canada are two, consume 87% of the world’s printing and writing papers. (These nations make up only 20% of the world’s population.)

4 Global production in the pulp, paper and publishing sector is expected to increase by 77% from 1995 to

5 South America is becoming a major global player in the forest, paper and packaging industry. By 2011, it is expected that five of the top ten market pulp producers will be based in South America.

6 Due to favorable climate, fertile soil and an abundance of land, South America has 21% of the global forest area and the lowest wood fiber costs in the world. This low cost has given them a competitive advantage in the industry.

7 There is great interest in wood from tree farms in South America. 70% of the wood that is harvested from these farms is located in Brazil and 20% in Chile.

8 Highly competitive wood costs and advanced technologies have built strong wood product and pulp industries in South America.

9 The pulp and paper industries are the single largest consumer of water used in industrial activities.

10 The pulp and paper industry is the third greatest industrial greenhouse gas emitter, after chemical and steel industries.

11 Paper pulp exports from Latin American forests have significantly grown since

12 Approximately 71% of the world’s paper supply comes from ecologically valuable forests with biologically diverse habitats. It does not come from tree farms with renewable resources.

13 Tree farms have about 90% fewer species of animal and plant life than the forests that came before them.

14 The US forest products industry generates more than $200 million a year in sales and employs more than 1 million people. This industry is among the top 10 manufacturing employers in 48 states.

15 The Southern region of the US, which has the most biologically diverse forests in North America, is the largest paper producing region in the world.

16 The forest products industry in Canada accounts for over 2% of Canada’s annual GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Fpac.ca/en/industry/economics_impact/

17 The forest products industry in Canada is one of the nation’s largest exporters. It ships over $40 billion of goods to markets around the world annually. Fpac.ca/en/industry/economics_impact/

18 The forest products industry is one of the largest industrial employers in Canada and the cornerstone of the economy. In many rural communities, this industry is sometimes the only one providing jobs in these parts of the country. Fpac.ca/en/industry/economics_impact/

19 The hundreds of thousands of Canadians working in the forest related industries are well paid and highly skilled. The average wage for these employees is higher than the national average wage. Fpac.ca/en/industry/economics_impact/

20 The paper industry is the largest consumer of forests in the US. It uses 5 million acres of forests each year. That is an area the size of New Jersey.

21 75% of the tree farms established in the last 20 years have been established at the expense of natural forests. This conversion from forests to tree farms is the leading cause of fresh water wetland loss in the Southern US.

22 Rural communities in the US, where the paper industry is concentrated, are economically worse off than other rural communities. They tend to have higher levels of poverty and unemployment. These communities also spend less money on public education.

23 90% of logging in British Columbia occurs in ancient forests. Of these trees, 40% are used to produce paper products.

24 The pulp and paper industry in Brazil generates $6 billion annually to their economy.

25 The US forest products industry accounts for approximately 6 percent of the total US manufacturing GDP (Gross Domestic Product). This is equal to the automotive and plastics industries.