UK waste wood market under continued strain, warns Wood Recyclers’ Association

The UK waste wood market remains under significant pressure, according to the Wood Recyclers’ Association (WRA), with growing stockpiles of material reported across the country.
Many recyclers have been forced to pause or restrict their intake of waste wood, as capacity constraints and reduced demand continue to affect the sector.
The WRA has warned that it could take several months for the backlog to clear and for market conditions to begin to stabilise.
The disruption first began in March 2025, when several of the UK’s largest users of waste wood — including biomass energy plants and panel board manufacturers — experienced a combination of planned maintenance shutdowns and unexpected outages.
The resulting fall in demand came at a critical time for the industry.
Seasonal trends have compounded the problem, with summer typically bringing higher volumes of waste wood alongside lower demand.
Although some facilities have since resumed operations, bringing short-term relief, further outages elsewhere have continued to suppress market activity, leaving the market heavily oversupplied.
Vicki Hughes, Technical Lead on the WRA Board, said: “It is still really tough in the waste wood market. We had hoped the situation would improve after the summer, and while some sites reopening did help, new breakdowns and extended shutdowns have left everyone with too much material.
"Many sites have been forced to close their gates or restrict intake, even to contracted customers. Even in the South East — typically a strong market — facilities are full, and some are now looking to export material where possible.”
Hughes described the situation as “a UK-wide, unprecedented challenge” affecting recyclers in every region.
“We urge those looking to offload waste wood to be patient, as recyclers are working hard to keep material moving where possible,” she added.
The abundance of material has also created storage pressures across the country. The WRA continues to work closely with environmental regulators in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to ensure a flexible and pragmatic approach to regulation during this period.
Hughes concluded: “We are very grateful to the regulators for their practical and supportive response to what is a challenging time for the industry.”