Forisk Consulting

05/22/2026

𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗢𝗦𝗕 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮 🪵

Forisk’s latest analysis of the OSB sector highlights the top producers shaping the North American market in 2025.

Key takeaways:
• Nine companies encompass the entire North American OSB sector
• U.S. producers account for 64% of total North American production
• West Fraser remains the largest OSB producer in both the U.S. and North America

The rankings are based on data from Forisk’s 𝘕𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘔𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘊𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦, which tracks over 2,350 wood-using facilities across North America.

Read more here:

Nine North American companies encompass the entire OSB sector, manufacturing 26.5 BSF (3/8”) in 2025. Seven OSB firms operate in the United States.

05/21/2026

The 2026 Q2 edition of the 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙠 𝙉𝙚𝙬𝙨 is hot off the press! This quarter's edition features:

• Select findings from the Q2 FRQ
• Featured research in the Q2 FRQ
• Research highlighted on Forisk's Blog
• Upcoming events
• Forisk in the News

Read the full newsletter here:

05/14/2026

𝗨.𝗦. 𝗛𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸: 𝗤𝟮 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗨𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲

Forisk published the Q2 edition of the 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘺 today, which includes our updated U.S. housing starts outlook. Forisk’s latest outlook points to continued near-term pressure on U.S. housing activity as elevated mortgage rates and economic uncertainty weigh on new construction. Forisk projects a slight decline (1.5%) in housing starts in 2026 followed by a recovery to 1.37 million units in 2027.

Read the full update from Shawn Baker here:

Forisk's Q2 2026 Housing Outlook anticipates little housing growth through 2027 and reviews Q1 housing activity relative to year-end actuals.

05/05/2026

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗪𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝗧𝘆𝗽𝗲 𝗡𝗽 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆? 🌲

Forisk’s latest blog post from Amanda Lang examines how expanded buffers on non-fish-bearing streams could reduce the harvestable timber base in Washington.

The findings point to meaningful impacts on available timber supply, with implications for landowners, mills, and regional wood fiber markets.

🔗 Read more:

An economic assessment performed by the University of Washington found that impacts from the Np rule ranged from a 1% loss to 12% loss in harvestable volume in counties in western Washington.

04/30/2026

𝗟𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴—𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴.

A new Forisk analysis from Brooks Mendell highlights a continued decline in lumber capacity across Western Canada—driven by factors like fiber constraints, policy pressures, and mill closures.

At the same time, investment momentum remains strong in the U.S. Pacific Northwest, where operators are positioning to capture supply gaps and evolving market demand.

Key takeaway: As Canadian capacity contracts, capital is reallocating south—reinforcing the Pacific Northwest’s role in North American lumber markets.

These regional shifts matter for timber supply, pricing, and long-term investment strategy.

Read more:

Changes in Western Canada's forest industry supported capital investments into mills and timberlands in the U.S. Pacific Northwest.

04/21/2026

𝗧𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 🌲📊

How do you evaluate a timberland investment with confidence?

In this latest 𝘊𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 (𝘊𝘔𝘍) case study, Forisk worked with a client to break down local market dynamics—looking at timber supply, demand, and competitive pressures—to support real-world investment decisions.

Key takeaways:
• Customized market analysis (not one-size-fits-all)
• Clear view of growth-to-drain and long-term supply trends
• Scenario-based insights to test investment strategies

The result? Better-informed decisions backed by data—not assumptions.

Read the full case study here:

The second post in a series of client case studies using Forisk's Custom Market Forecast.

04/14/2026

𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆: 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗨𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆

How do you de-risk a bioenergy project? Start with better market intel.

Forisk’s 𝘊𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘵 (𝘊𝘔𝘍) helped evaluate local wood supply, competition, and long-term sustainability—turning complex market dynamics into clear, actionable insights.

• Custom markets > broad assumptions
• Scenario modeling = better risk visibility
• Third-party data = stronger decisions

Read the full case study:

Case Study: Evaluating Long-term Low-Grade Softwood Supply and Pricing

04/09/2026

𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵: 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝘂𝗹𝗽𝘄𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀?

Forisk will publish the 2026 Q2 edition of the 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘺 (𝘍𝘙𝘘) in May, featuring new analysis on how changes in pulpwood prices impact timberland values and returns in the U.S. South.

This quarter’s featured research puts recent wood market shifts into context—helping investors and landowners better understand risk, exposure, and key drivers of performance.

We also include an updated snapshot of North American timberland ownership and management, covering over 300 organizations and over 100 million acres across the U.S. and Canada.

Read the full release here:

03/31/2026

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟱

Forisk's latest blog post from Stephen Wright looks at the possible cumulative demand of biomass projects that were canceled and projects where the new demand has been "realized."

Forisk's analysis shows that only 28% of the projected cumulative demand from biomass mills has actually reached the market by 2025.

Read the full post here:

In the Q4 2022 edition of the Forisk Research Quarterly (FRQ), we analyzed the success rate of export pellet projects making it to the groundbreaking phase. This post is a spiritual successor to that sidebar. Leveraging over ten years of more…

03/24/2026

𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨.𝗦. 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗲 📉

Forisk's latest blog from Chris King shows that both mill and forest biomass prices declined again in Q1 2026 across the South Central and Southeast regions. The story? Too much supply chasing too little demand.

Even with mill curtailments and closures, residual material is still outpacing consumption—keeping downward pressure on prices. Storm-related timber (Hurricane Helene) has only added to the surplus in some markets.

At the same time, the industry is looking for new outlets—ranging from biochar to emerging biocarbon projects—to help absorb excess material.

Read the full post here:

Biomass prices continue to decline in the Southern regions as residual material is produced at a higher rate than it is being consumed.