Timber Sector Generates Value with Sustainable Practices

Pará is experiencing a decisive moment in its environmental and economic agenda. Between August 2024 and July 2025, the state recorded the smallest deforested area of the decade, with a 21% reduction compared to the previous year, according to data from the Deter system of the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe). This result reflects a paradigm shift that unites government, the productive sector, and society around a new mindset: combining development with environmental conservation.

In this context, companies in the timber sector are already applying solutions to generate value without harming the Amazon’s biodiversity. Teak Resources Company (TRC), for example, positions Pará as a strategic player in the international market. With more than 30 years of experience, the company is the world’s largest private producer of certified teak wood and shows how legal and sustainable forest management can generate development, open markets, and position the state as a global reference in bioeconomy.

The company’s new sawmill, located in the village of Casa de Tábua, in Santa Maria das Barreiras (southeastern Pará), features a high degree of teak wood (noble and high-quality) processing, adding value, generating jobs, and expanding access to demanding markets. According to Fausto Takizawa, TRC’s Director of Institutional Relations, “this model helps consolidate the perception that timber from Pará can be competitive, sustainable, and socially responsible.”

The Boiteca Project develops forestry and cattle ranching on the same land.

“The bioeconomy in Pará’s forest management goes far beyond wood production. It involves the full use of the forest and its by-products, generating innovation, jobs, and new business opportunities.”

— Fausto Hissashi Takizawa, Director of Institutional Relations at TRC

The FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification obtained by the company ensures that the wood does not originate from illegal deforestation, serving as a passport to premium markets. In addition to investing in traceability, chain of custody, and using residues for bioenergy, the timber company also develops the Boiteca Project, which integrates livestock and forestry, increases profitability, and promotes productive inclusion.

Another company reinforcing Pará’s leadership in sustainable forest management is Benevides Madeiras, located in the Metropolitan Region of Belém. Operating in a concession area within the Caxiuanã National Forest, the company combines environmental responsibility with valuing local communities. With certifications such as FSC and ISO 9001, 45001, and 14001, Benevides invests in traceability, transparency, and low-impact practices, such as limiting tree cutting per hectare and replanting with native species.

Through the Aflora Project, developed in partnership with institutions such as the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), the Federal Rural University of the Amazon (UFRA), and the Pará Forestry and Biodiversity Development Institute (IDEFLOR-Bio), the company promotes productive inclusion and infrastructure in quilombola communities, benefiting more than 578 families with actions ranging from training to road construction and access to basic services. According to Ana Carolina Betzel, Legal Counsel at Benevides Madeiras, “the annual certification evaluates product origin, compliance with legislation, and the sustainable use of resources, strengthening the company’s position in the national and international markets.”

Strategic Support

The advancement of the timber sector is also driven by FIEPA’s Environmental and Sustainability Thematic Council (Coema), which acts as a bridge between companies, government, and civil society. The institution promotes sustainability as a competitiveness strategy through fostering the circular economy and efficient use of natural resources, business training in environmental practices and certifications, integration with research institutions for adopting green technologies, and the creation of regulatory dialogue platforms that prepare companies for sustainable market trends and demands.

Sustainable forest management has generated concrete opportunities, such as exports to demanding markets — like Europe and North America — and the added value of forest products, with greater acceptance and international reputation. This scenario drives companies to reposition strategically, focusing on practices aligned with the green economy and good environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices.

Deryck Martins, President of Coema/FIEPA, highlights that this progress is a direct result of the sector’s professionalization. “Since 2014, exports had been declining, reflecting a still very disorganized activity. Starting in 2017, with companies’ adjustments and their pursuit of certifications and environmental and social care, this movement stabilized. Today, Pará exports around 200 million dollars per year in forest products, maintaining a stable level thanks to organization and commitment to sustainability,” he says.

FIEPA’s Environmental and Sustainability Thematic Council works to demystify the idea that sustainability is a cost, promoting success stories, economic studies, and thematic events that showcase the real gains of sustainable practices. However, entrepreneurs still face challenges such as bureaucratic hurdles in environmental licensing, high initial costs for sustainable technologies, scarcity of specialized labor in the interior, and legal uncertainty due to regulatory changes.

“Environmental management is no longer just a legal obligation. Today, it is a competitiveness strategy that positions companies from Pará in the world’s most demanding markets.”

— Deryck Martins, President of FIEPA’s Environmental and Sustainability Thematic Council (Coema)