GD HOLZ / Gesamtverband Deutscher Holzhandel E.V.

Based in Berlin, our organisation is divided into five sections: wholesaling, retailing, foreign trade, round timber trade and veneer business.

The 900 member companies of the German Timber Trade Federation (GD Holz) had a combined annual turnover of €11bn in 2011.

The main events for the Federation are our General Assembly, which takes place once a year, and the “Branchentag Holz”, the trade fair of the timber sector, which is held every second year.

Drawing on the range of services and expertise offered within our five divisions, GD Holz can offer significant know-how and advice to anyone with a technical or other query about timber. We also provide legal advice and services.

Our federation also provides our membership with a link into a much wider industry network. We are a member of several German wood industry associations, including the German Wood Economic Affairs Council (DHWR) and the Initiative for Veneer and Nature (IFN). We also participate in a range of engineering standards committees and, of course, are now also a member of the European Timber Trade Federation (ETTF), which widens our range of contacts and input across the EU.

Currently our main projects are FSC and PEFC group certification initiatives for member companies, and our  application to become one of the official  monitoring organizations for the  EU Timber Regulation. We are also involved in timber trade promotion in Germany, e-learning and other areas of education and training in the sector.