From January 14–19, 2018 representatives from the Province of B.C. will lead a delegation of government and forest sector executives to India to understand the market and evaluate the strategic activities being delivered by FII and Canada Wood in India to grow demand for Canadian products.
The purpose of this year’s mission is to measure progress made since senior government and industry executives visited India 18 months ago to understand how the strategy and market development efforts underway aligned with realities in the market. The mission represents an ongoing commitment from the Province and Canadian forest industry to understand the market through regular visits to meet with wood importers, end users, manufacturers and builders.
The mission program has several objectives, including to demonstrate how different target audiences in India are accepting a range of B.C. species, both coastal and interior, in a number of end use applications; and to provide delegates with updates on the India strategy including the status of marketing activities, product trials and demonstration projects. The Canadian High Commission to India will also provide delegates with an economic and political briefing while in New Delhi.
To understand how wood product demand varies by region, delegates will visit a number of locations, including the Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology (CEPT) University in Ahmedabad, the site of FII’s largest demonstration project to date—a project that features a mix of coastal and interior species as well as engineered wood products from B.C. (Photo: B.C. Deputy Minister of forests Tim Sheldan and CEPT University President Dr. Bim Patel commemorate the opening of the CEPT workshops during the January, 2018 mission to India).
Watch a video of the CEPT project on YouTube.
Additional site visits across India include:
- JC Antiques—a leading export-focused furniture manufacturer looking for alternatives to local mango, acacia and sheesham and is currently trialing western hemlock
- A&D International—another export-focused furniture manufacturer looking for alternatives to local hardwood species and is also currently trialing western hemlock
- BMM Cottages—a real estate group developing 60 SPF (J-grade) prefabricated cottages on the outskirts of Bangalore
- Prestige Villas—a leading high end developer building a luxury villa and apartment project using yellow cedar in a number of applications
- Shanti Vijaya Sawmill—one of the largest importers of wood in southern India
FII is confident that India represents a tremendous, long-term opportunity for Canadian wood products and species.
Market development efforts would not be possible without ongoing commitment from government and industry. For more information on how the Province is positioning B.C. wood species in India, visit canadianwood.in.
