Factors affecting enlargement of family forest holdings

Abstract

This study contributes to the research of enlargement -a counterforce of parcelization -of forest holdings. To help planning policy measures aiming at increased average size of forest holdings, we study the characteristics of family forest owners who acquired additional forestland area during the years [2004][2005][2006][2007][2008]. Increases of forestland area due to purchases on the open market, purchases from parents or other relatives, inheritance or gift are studied. Survey data, containing information of 6318 forest owners, are analyzed with logistic regression analysis in order to establish a relationship between the probability of increasing the forestland area and the characteristics of landowners. The results indicate that young male owners, who appreciate economic values of the ownership and are active users of their forest estates, most often expand their forest property. This can be considered as an encouraging result from the point of view of the political objective to boost forest management activity through enlarging family forest holdings.

Factors Influencing the Choice of Management Strategy among Small-Scale Private Forest Owners in Sweden

“…Owners of larger properties often chose the Productivity strategy, since income from forestry was important to them; in addition, they were particularly interested in forestry issues. Forest management is less relevant to the economic income of owners of smaller properties [36], who therefore tended to choose the Passive strategy. Property size was more strongly associated with management choices in Southern Sweden, where properties were generally more productive and smaller than in Northern Sweden.…”

Implications of the Private Property Right to the Community Forest Businesses Formalization through the Certification Policy

“…Those economic reasons are normal as the people wish to have extra income 2013EISSN: 2089-2063 3 178-186 December besides their main income from the agricultural sector. A similar situation occurs in Finland where the economic purpose is the driving factor for forests owners to expand their forest lands (Suuriniemi et al 2012).…”

‘More-than-human’ resilience(s)? Enhancing community in Finnish forest farms

“…This is arguably due to the structural reform in Finnish agriculture post-1995, when Finland joined the EU, with more farms becoming 'part-time' and so increasingly reliant on waged income as opposed to the more traditional but time-consuming forestry work (Hilden et al, 2012;Puurunen and Vare, 2002). In turn, this change in owner characteristics has, Suuriniemi et al (2012) argue, also diversified their objectives with conservation and recreation increasingly valued. Nonetheless, despite this empirical evidence, the rhetoric around the economic significance of the forest persists, and in the farmers' accounts of their everyday practices it loomed larger than any other income-generating activity.…”