Eucalyptus Prices

[PaddyThai]

We are thinking of selling about 200 rai of 7-8 year old Eucalyptus trees in Chaiyaphum and wondered what prices others are getting.

Thanks.

[ozzydom]

We are thinking of selling about 200 rai of 7-8 year old Eucalyptus trees in Chaiyaphum and wondered what prices others are getting.

Thanks.

One of the locals cut a tandem truck load and headed off to Udon Thani to sell , it is now stacked in his yard as he could not find a buyer.

[Thaicoon]

3 years ago we planted 6000 saplings they are now about 3 metres tall, we were thinking of planting more this year, my brother in law told us forget it, as everyone got on the band wagon, now the price has gone out of them and people have a job to sell.

[jamescollister]

Everything is down at the moment, but will come up again [sooner or later] the idea is to have the supply available when the price goes up. I would think that now is the time to plant for the future, when all around are getting out. This would apply to any long term investment,as long as you can afford to wait the time. Jim

[slapout]

James probably has the right thought on this, buy (plant) when price low and sell when high. If you can afford to wait and have the patience for the higher prices, but many of the locals have neither, it seems. The majority of farm product prices and return, seems at a record low, compared the past 10 to 15 years.

[PaddyThai]

I would prefer not to cut and sell eucalyptus now but have to for the following reasons;

1. Contractor is in the area and has given price based on cutting our euca as well as neighbours.

2. Access to our plantation is difficult and we can use other peoples roads to move trees while thye are cutting theirs.

3. If we leave trees for a few more years they will be too big (news to me). Cutting them now will allow new shoots to produce new trees for cutting in 5 -7 years.

Price is down by about 50% on last few years but even at that not much demand to buy them.

[GungaDin]

I know zip abt prices but I did a visa run in Feb, Ist time in ages, wow... has the landscape changed between bkk and Poipet!

Thousands of eucs on a landscape which was previously barren.

No wonder the price is so low. Every man & his soi dog must be growing eucs.

[473geo]

Intersting the 'in a few years they will be too big' comment...I would suspect this is for pulp wood and to do with the new shoots being harvested in the next 5-7 years

If you google Eucalyptus wood you will see the mature product can be used to make furniture.....maybe leave a handfull rai to mature could be an alternative option if the price is low

Just a thought for you...

[ozzydom]

I would have real reservations if it was the contractor who told you about them getting to big, the size of the chipper is the governing factor plus of course being a size that can be handled manually (loading) but the fairly short lengths they cut them to is easily split to halves or quarters for handling.

As the previous poster states , Eucalyptus ( Australian or Tasmanian Oak ) is a first class building and furniture timber and timber suitable for scantling is worth big baht in Thailand.

[farmerjo]

Not sure how it works in thailand,but in western australia bluegums took over hundreds of thousands of hectres in the 90,s.

Primarily as the government offered lucrative tax breaks.As these breaks have been dissolved and with japan being the major buyer as woodchips,yesterday on tv i saw the two largest companies TIMBERCORP AND GREAT SOUTHERN PLANTATIONS have gone broke.

Dont like to sound pessamistic but this industry world wide will take a long time to recover.

Not into growing trees myself i hope everyone involved gets through it with some sort of profit.

[ozzydom]

Not sure how it works in thailand,but in western australia bluegums took over hundreds of thousands of hectres in the 90,s.

Primarily as the government offered lucrative tax breaks.As these breaks have been dissolved and with japan being the major buyer as woodchips,yesterday on tv i saw the two largest companies TIMBERCORP AND GREAT SOUTHERN PLANTATIONS have gone broke.

Dont like to sound pessamistic but this industry world wide will take a long time to recover.

Not into growing trees myself i hope everyone involved gets through it with some sort of profit.

Wood chips prices have dropped by less than most other agricultural commodities.

Timbercorp and Great Southern are agricultural investment schemes in which investors COULD get tax breaks by investing with view to long term profit.

Much of the money invested would have been lost to income tax as it most usually made up of taxable profits from other ventures.

Management fees deducted by the managing company is the biggest bugbear with these schemes, Great Southern tried to grow to quickly by expanding with bank loans until they could not service the loans and the banks foreclosed.

The initial investors stand to get nothing back because as is usual the banks get first bite at the apple.

G S in particular diversified away from the original hard and soft wood plantations into almond and olive groves as well as now holding 250,000 head of beef cattle which was their downfall as beef prices for export have dropped and the olive and almonds are a way off producing so when the banks stopped loaning for their ongoing maintenance GS fate was sealed.

Banks are not stupid and do their sums before pulling the pin, GS in particular have great value in their assets,its just that they cant be realised without ongoing capital until harvesting. It is reported that new investors are lining up to get into the action even without the tax breaks being applicable now.

[Maxxamum]

I know zip abt prices but I did a visa run in Feb, Ist time in ages, wow... has the landscape changed between bkk and Poipet!

Thousands of eucs on a landscape which was previously barren.

No wonder the price is so low. Every man & his soi dog must be growing eucs.

AA just opened their first distribution center in Los Angeles and the US market has long anticipated the coming of their high quality paper. Just in time for the market to drop! But there are signs the economy is improving...it always does. So what if it is low today, there are good bargains on land right now if you can buy-and-hold. I can wait. Historically Euca prices have been steady and things will return to normal. I plan to buy now, plant now and see where things are in 3 years.

[farmerjo]

Just to add elders,one of australias biggest rural companies subsidury itc is in restructuring as we speak with credit being withdrawn for this industry.

[BEENTHEREDONETHAT]

There was a large tea tree farm near us in Australia. They cut the trees every year and then processed them to make tea tree oil, which was pretty popular at the time, and had many uses. Don't know much about it but sure you can find out by googling it.