PeruForests - Documents

Mahogany Trade

Overview:

Bigleaf mahogany is the last of three genuine mahogany species in the genus Swietenia that survives in significant concentrations. The high demand for mahogany wood has rendered two other species—Caribbean mahogany (S. mahogani) and Pacific Coast mahogany (S. humilis)—commercially extinct. Bigleaf mahogany (S. macrophylla) is rapidly following suit. Although its natural range stretches from southern Mexico to the tropics of South America, bigleaf mahogany is now depleted or commercially extinct throughout much of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Colombia, and in large regions of Peru, Bolivia and Brazil.

Mahogany exploitation has followed a pattern of local bust and boom, moving from one country to the next, for more than a century. Due to depletion of the species and resulting export controls in both Bolivia and Brazil—which imposed an export moratorium in 2002 in reaction to widespread illegal logging—the pressure has shifted to Peru, who is now the world’s main exporter of mahogany.

In Peru, the trade in bigleaf mahogany was largely unregulated until Peru added it to Appendix III of the CITES in 2001. Additional protection was given to bigleaf mahogany in 2003 when international concern for the species led to its up listing on Appendix II. Nevertheless, logging companies are still trading it illegally, intimidating Peruvian authorities, and finding loopholes in the system that they can sneak through. Peruvian Authorities estimate that nearly 80% of mahogany is logged illegally, often from protected areas and indigenous reserves.

US Importers:

The United States is the largest importer of Peruvian mahogany, accounting for MORE THAN 85% of exports. In 2005 and 2006, Bozovich Timber Products, T. Baird Mcilvain International Company, and Maderera Gutierrez y Hernandez LTDA were the top three importing companies in the United States, accounting for more than 60% of all mahogany imports in both years.

Top Importers in 2006 according to Peruvian federal documents:

	Importer	City	State	Volume of S. Macrophylla Imported (m3) by Importer	% of Imports to the USA
1	MADERERA GUTIERREZ Y HERNANDEZ LTDA	Gulf Shores	AL	4653.48	28.5
2	T. BAIRD MCILVAIN INTERNATIONAL COMPANY +TBM HARDWOODS INC.	King of Prussia	PA	2934.555	18
3	BOZOVICH TIMBER PRODUCTS INC.	Evergreen	AL	2,304.56	14.1
4	DOWNES & READER HARDWOOD CO. INC.	Stoughton	MA	996.405	6.1
5	BANKS HARDWOODS FLORIDA LLC.	Miami	FL	928.102	5.7
6	J. GIBSON MCILVAIN COMPANY INC.	White Marsh	MD	833.67	5.1
7	REX LUMBER COMPANY	Acton	MA	817.648	5
8	NEWMAN LUMBER COMPANY	Gulfport	MS	544.983	3.3
9	LANE STANTON VANCE LUMBER CO.	City of Industry	CA	504.345	3.1
10	OVERSEAS TROPICAL LUMBER LLC.	Lutz	FL	399.889	2.5
11	J. E. HIGGINS LUMBER COMPANY	Livermore	CA	340.635	2.1
12	DEL MAR INTERNATIONAL	Houston	TX	314.224	1.9
13	ALAN MCILVAIN COMPANY	Marcus Hook	PA	276.598	1.7
14	SPECIALTY WOODS INC.	Destin	FL	246.988	1.5
15	INTER CONTINENTAL HARDWOODS INC.	Currie	NC	114.522	0.7
16	ASERRADERO ESPINOZA SA	El Salvador	N/A	43.982	0.3
17	PRECIOUS TROPICAL HARDWOODS CORP.	Corona	CA	32.837	0.2
18	INTERNATIONAL WOOD PRODUCTS INC.	Medley	FL	24.424	0.1
				TOTAL: 16311.85

Top Importers in 2005 according to United States federal documents:

	Importer	City	State	Volume of S. Macrophylla Imported (m3) by Importer	% of Imports to the USA	Ports of Importation in 2005
1	Bozovich Timber Products	Evergreen	AL	4740.4988	21.9	MD, PA
2	T. Baird MCILVAIN INTERNATIONAL COMPANY +TBM Hardwoods inc.	King of Prussia	PA	7036.8785	32.5	AL, FL, PA, SC
3	Maderera Gutierrez y Hernandez Ltda	Gulf Shores	AL	2817.874	13.0	AL, CA, FL, LA, NJ/NY
4	J. Gibson Mcilvain Co	White Marsh	MD	4045.053	5.7	AL,LA,NJ/NY
5	Downes & Reader Hardwood	Stoughton	MA	1173.4665	5.4	MD,WA
6	Alan Mcilvain Co	Marcus Hook	PA	940.317	4.3	SC
7	Overseas Tropical Lumber	Lutz	FL	554.618	2.6	MD
8	Dan K. Moore Lumber Co	Lexington	NC	538.801	2.5	CA
9	Lane Stanton Vance Lumber	City of Industry	CA	494.002	2.3	AL
10	Banks Hardwoods Florida	Miami	FL	486.035	2.2	FL
11	Inter-Continental Hardwoods	Currie	NC	366.138	1.7	MD,SC
12	Rex Lumber Co	Acton	MA	332.578	1.5	LA
13	Thompson Mahogany Co	Philadelphia	PA	245.98	1.1	CA
14	Fine Woods Products	Miami	FL	200.69	0.9	AL,PA
15	South Florida Lumber Co	Coral Gables	FL	169.861	0.8	AL,MD
16	Speciality Woods Inc	Destin	FL	112.939	0.5	AL
17	Medley Hardwoods	Medley	FL	85.324	0.4	MD, PA
18	Precious Tropical Hardwoods	Corona	CA	65.8	0.3	MD
19	Patriot Timber Products	Greensboro	NC	34.82	0.2	MD, PA
				TOTAL: 24441.67

Peruvian Exporters:

Main Mahogany Exporting Companies - 2006

	Exporting Companies	% of total exports
1	TRANSFORESTAL CCC S.A.C.	22.64
2	FORESTAL VENAO S.R.L.	11.73
3	MADERERA BOZOVICH S.A.C.	6.84
4	MADERERA JUANJUI S.A.C.	5.82
5