The Lie Behind the Ply
In an unprecedented investigation that connects threatened forests of Solomon Islands, China’s timber manufacturing hubs, and European importers, our new report The Lie Behind the Ply reveals how European consumers of tropical plywood have been the unwitting drivers of forest degradation. Our findings show that European companies appear to have imported thousands of tons of tropical-faced plywood, at high risk of containing illegal wood and in apparent violation of European law.
The findings expose the role of Jiangsu High Hope Arser (“Arser”), the largest Chinese plywood exporter, and what appears to be a fraud of over 100,000 tons of Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified products. EIA found that systemic lack of transparency in the global supply chain for tropical-faced plywood lies at the heart of the problem.
EIA-US contacted entities named in the report and incorporated responses received prior to publication into the report. Below are the more complete responses. Some information was removed either because it was personally identifying information or not directly relevant to the substance of the report.