Sustainable forest – a promise for the future

From seed to wood product

We are experienced forest experts who manage the value chain from forest seed to the finished wood product.

We own large tracts of land, so we understand the needs of every forester and offer professional services to address both current and long-term issues. We are also actively involved in knowledge development so that together we can take the best possible care of the landscape and the environment, ensuring the long-term availability of wood.

Our experience and expertise

Through our work, we are creating higher quality and more productive forests that sequester carbon faster and more efficiently, helping to achieve the country’s environmental goals.

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At Zābaki Nursery, we have grown 20 million tree seedlings over more than 25 years.

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Latvijas Finieris owns more than 10 000 ha of land.

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in properly managed birch stands, we already produce veneer trees just 22 years after planting.

We process wood grown in the forest at Latvijas Finieris factories

Our factories

Services for forest owners

Purchasing of veneer logs

Purchase of felling area

Forest property acquisition, management and consultancy

Sale of tree seedlings

Purchasing of veneer logs

Trust a stable partner with long-term experience. We will process your birch veneer logs in Latvia into export products with high added-value.

Sell veneer logs

Purchase of felling area

If you want to sell a felling area where birch also grows, offer it to us. We provide professional and high-quality felling, high prices and fast payment.

Sell felling area

Forest property acquisition, management and consultancy

We buy forest properties and provide services and consultancy related to forest property management throughout Latvia.

Sell forest

Sale of tree seedlings

Birch tree sapling held up by a hand against a forest

We offer quality birch and alder seedlings for the reforestation and afforestation of unused agricultural land.

Book seedlings

Birch grows quickly if properly cared for

Birch is one of the three dominant and economically important tree species in Latvia. Our long-term experience in forestry has shown that in properly managed stands, timber yields can be significantly increased compared to natural forests and can be obtained in a relatively short period of time (40–45 years).

Video: How to grow veneer logs in 22 years?

A lane of birch tree saplings planted in the dirt

How to plant and grow birch properly?

Find out more

Tall birch trees under clear blue sky from bottom perspective view

For more than 25 years, Latvijas Finieris has been actively involved in creating knowledge about rational land management. Growing birch is economically sound and easy to implement for anyone – find out more in our information materials.

Seminars for forest owners

To promote the exchange of forestry knowledge in Latvia and the Nordic countries, we regularly organise seminars on birch growing and care with the participation of leading Latvian forestry scientists and specialists.

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A group of people standing and listening in a birch groove

A group of people standing in a birch groove where some of the birch trees are marked with red tape

A group of people standing around young birch and spruce trees

A group of people walking trough a birch forest where a few birch trees are marked with red tape

A group of people in the tall grass looking through brochures about owning and managing forests

A man sitting in the tall grass in front of a group of people reading a brochure about owning and managing forests

A man looking through a brochure about owning and management in the tall grass

Two men looking through a brochure about owning and management in the tall grass

A woman in the tall grass taking a picture of a newly cut down birch log

A man in a cap walking through a young birch groove with tall grass.

Two men walking through a snowy forest clearing behind newly cut down birch trees

Two men in reflective vests and protective helmets standing in a snowy forest clearing

Our responsible forestry principles

Forest and land assets of Latvijas Finieris are managed by the Group’s company, Latvijas Finieris mežs SIA, in accordance with the PEFC standard of the world’s leading forest certification organisation. The Group’s forestry subsidiary Liepājas MRS and company Ludzas MRS SIA provide full-cycle forestry services.

Future-orientated property selection

The decision to start acquiring land with the aim of creating productive forest stands was taken by the management of Latvijas Finieris in 1998. The company currently owns more than 10 000 ha of land, mostly forest. We continue to acquire new properties every year. Looking to the future, we prefer to create new, high-quality forest, so we mainly acquire unused agricultural land, clearings, young and middle-aged stands.

Restoring and replanting quality forests

When restoring clearings on forest land, we balance natural and artificial reforestation methods, encouraging the maintenance of the most natural forest ecosystem possible. When planting a new forest in a place where it did not exist before, we carefully assess the relevant growing conditions and choose the most appropriate tree species when forming grouped stands. We use selected birch, spruce, pine and alder seedlings, which are more resistant to the negative effects of external factors.

Leasing of agricultural land

We are aware that maintaining both forest and agricultural land is a multi-generational effort. When we buy properties that include plots of fertile agricultural land, we lease them to local farmers.

Forest care and protection

In our forest management work, we follow the latest findings of scientists at the Latvian State Forest Research Institute Silava. A properly managed forest grows faster, sequesters more CO₂, and produces a higher yield of high-quality round timber assortments that can be used to produce long-lasting wood products that continue to serve as carbon sinks throughout their life cycle. Wherever possible, we restore and maintain drainage systems on our properties that were neglected for decades. Given the large number of wild animals in Latvia – elk, deer, does and wild boar – we have concluded hunting leases on our properties. In areas where the risk of animal damage is highest, we protect young stands with a variety of protective measures made from natural materials.

Promotion of biodiversity

The task of a responsible forest owner is to promote biodiversity and to identify and conserve nature values. Latvian legislation in this area is some of the strictest in Europe. We have micro-reserves and buffer zones for specially protected bird species, where we operate in accordance with a species-specific conservation plan. And we have voluntarily committed to do more than required by law. For example, we do not log in habitats of European importance recorded in the Latvian nature data management system Ozols, and we control invasive species wherever possible. In 2022, we created a new layer of land category “voluntary nature conservation” in our forests.

Recreation and landscape for the public

Wherever possible, we create recreational areas on company properties that can be used by everyone – locals and travellers alike. As part of our commitment to the landscape, we dismantle dangerous and visually unattractive slums and revitalise degraded areas on the properties we acquire. When assessing the most rational way to manage land, we pay close attention to the interests of local people. For example, we have abandoned the original idea of afforesting the land, instead entering into lease agreements with the operators of small gardens and allowing them to continue growing their own produce.

Contributing to climate targets

Sustainable forest management and the use of long-lived wood products are one of the ways to achieve the European Green Deal climate target of significantly reducing CO₂ emissions. As forests grow, they sequester carbon from the atmosphere, which wood products store over their lifetime.

Support for the fight for freedom of the Ukrainian people

For every m³ of veneer log bought and processed into valuable export products, we donate EUR 5 to the Ukrainian people. This is your chance to strengthen Latvia’s economy and our common chance to help the Ukrainian people in their fight for security and peace across Europe.

Support for Ukraine

A dove and statement "Together we will win" in Latvian with Ukrainian flag in the background

Birch resources in the Baltic Sea region

Latvijas Finieris has factories in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Finland, so our wood resources are sourced from the Baltic Sea region of the European Union.

The total annual birch wood production in these countries exceeds 20 million m³.

In the Baltic countries, forests cover about 45% of the total area, of which just over half – 52% – is owned by private landowners. The rest is managed by the State and local governments. The volume of wood accumulated in the Baltic forests – the growing stock – increases by 41.6 million m³ every year, while the annual harvesting volume is around 25 million m³. The large positive difference is one of the key indicators for the sustainability of forestry processes.

Birch is one of the three most widespread and economically important tree species in the Baltic states, with birch wood accounting for about one third of the total growing stock in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, or ~360 million m³.

In Finland and Sweden, birch accounts for about half as much of the forest area as in the Baltic states – the northern climates are more dominated by conifers. At the same time, in absolute terms, the birch growing stock and birch wood production are several times greater than in the Baltic states, taking into account the total area of these countries.