Wood Processing Industry

Serbian wood processing industry represents an industry with a series of comparative advantages, if compared with other industries, taking in consideration the usage of domestic raw material base as a big potential on which its production is based.

Over the past decade, this industry has been recording positive results according to the increasing number of companies, employment growth, realized business revenue, export and positive foreign trade balance.

The economic activities in the forest based industry, especially in the wood processing sector, are directed to researches and promotion of the entire utilization of wood as sustainable, renewable, climate- friendly and ecologically- acceptable raw material without putting in danger forests and the ecosystem.

The forestry, wood processing and furniture industries are the economic activities connected in the creation of value added chain, and are representing the real examples of the circular economy as a strategic determinant of the EU policy.

Taking into account that this wood-based industry is highly export-oriented, it has significant development potential. A growth in exports, the improvement of technological level of production and needs of the labour market require a joint action of all the stakeholders in the following period.

Serbian wood processing companies have the long standing tradition of suppling foreign buyers, especially EU and Russia, and a skill set for this sector is being constantly improved.

The sector has highly skilled workforce, and is constantly modernizing plants, equipment and business operations to accommodate the emerging technologies and management approaches, which fuel the sector’s growth.

Due to a number of free trade agreements, Serbia can serve as a manufacturing hub for duty-free exports to the market of more than 1 billion people that includes the European Union, the United States of America, the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Turkey, South East Europe, the European Free Trade Agreement members and Belarus. Serbia is the only country outside the Commonwealth of Independent States that has signed the free trade agreement with Russia.