Group unveils blueprint to grow Maine’s timber industry by 40 percent

FOR/Maine, a cross-sector coalition of forest industry stakeholders, unveiled a plan at the University of Maine Tuesday to increase the value of Maine's struggling timber economy by 40 percent. From far left: Yellow Light Breen, President and CEO of the Maine Development Foundation; Charlotte Mace, Executive Director of Biobased Maine; Jim Robbins, the fourth generation owner of Robbins Family Lumber in Searsmont; Peggy Daigle, an East Millinocket selectwoman and retired town manager who has worked for four different paper mill communities; and Steve Schley, President of Pingree Associates. (Callie Ferguson | BDN)

Maine’s forest industry could enter a “second golden age” if it invests in making a diverse array of timber products, extending beyond paper and the traditional building materials that once buoyed the state’s economy, an industry group said Tuesday.

FOR/Maine, a coalition of people who have spent the past two years studying the industry’s future, outlined a blueprint Tuesday to help it rebound.

The panel of industry players and researchers hope their five-point plan will steer the once-prosperous industry to grow 40 percent over the next six years — from $8.5 billion to $12 billion by 2025.

To read the rest of “Group unveils blueprint to grow Maine’s timber industry by 40 percent,” an article by contributing Bangor Daily News staff writer Callie Ferguson, please follow this link to the BDN online.