New European Timber Trade Federation established

Sep 18, 2009. /Lesprom Network/. A new European Timber Trade Federation (ETTF) was established on July 2009 to represent trade interests at European level, as ITTO reported Lesprom Network. The management team of the ETTF is headed by Andre de Boer of the Netherlands Timber Trade Association (VVNH). De Boer will combine his role as CEO of VVNH with his new role as ETTF General Secretary until the end of this year, after which time he will dedicate himself to his new tasks as ETTF. The ETTF membership comprises 12 national importer associations: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK. The official headquarters of the ETTF will be in Brussels, Belgium, however de Boer will coordinate Federation work from Almere in the Netherlands. A key objective is to ensure more powerful representation of the interests European wood importers at EU level, for example in relation to on-going negotiations surrounding legislative proposals which aim to minimise the risk of illegal wood entering European supply chains.