Russia tricks export ban: wood from the war on German shelves!

The Russian economy is impressively resilient despite significant Western sanctions, particularly in the area of ​​fossil fuel exports. According to that Mercury Russia has found ways to circumvent these sanctions and continues to export timber to the European Union. An analysis by the environmental organization WWF reveals that large quantities of wood and wood products also end up in Germany, including everyday products such as coffee spoons, stir sticks and cutlery, which may come from Russian birch wood.

During testing, WWF researchers found that Russian wood was identified in 14 of 21 products examined. Russia uses third countries such as China, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan to conceal wood exports to the EU, even though these countries hardly produce birch wood. Eurostat data shows that imports of timber from Russia into the EU have almost completely collapsed, yet Russia has generated an estimated 1.5 billion euros from timber sales since the EU sanctions began.

Calls for stricter controls

The environmental organization WWF is urgently calling for stricter controls to stop the import of Russian wood and protect consumers from supporting military activities. Since the import ban on wood from Russia came into force in June 2022, in the wake of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, more violations have been discovered. A market analysis by the WWF shows that two thirds of the disposable wood products tested contain wood from Russia, with Russian wood being detected in 14 of the 21 companies examined. These include well-known brands such as McDonald's, Burger King, and Rewe.

WWF investigations suggest that illegal timber harvesting in Russia, which was up to 20% in the West and up to 50% in the East, indicates possible violations of the embargo. Companies such as Rewe and McDonald's claim that they use FSC or PEFC-certified wood from Latvia or Eastern Europe, but independent laboratory analyzes exclude these regions of origin. This increases suspicions of illegal practices, which often involve transshipment of timber via third countries such as Kazakhstan, Turkey or China.

Overall, WWF's market analysis, based on Earthsight's research, highlights the problem of illegal wood imports and the challenges in enforcing import bans. WWF requires companies to ensure that they source their goods from legal and sustainable sources.