Author: News

In the Mykolaiv and Odesa regions the “Pivdennyi Forest Office” established seedling nurseries covering a total of 45 ha.

A nursery, ranging from 0.3 to 3 ha, has been set up in almost every forestry.

Just a year ago, this area was overrun with weeds. Thanks to the enterprise’s investments, the nurseries have been restored—they now have soil‐tilling equipment, irrigation systems, and shade nets to protect seedlings from the hot southern sun. Staff have also been assembled.

By spring 2026, 25 million seedlings planted this spring and last autumn are expected to be ready!

This will be enough to afforest 4–5 thousand hectares.

A significant share of the planting stock will be allocated to restoring forests in the de-occupied Kherson Region forestry enterprises, which will join SFE “Forests of Ukraine” this year.

1.5 ha – the area of fires that occurred over the past week on the territories of SFE “Forests of Ukraine.”

In the Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk regions, several small ignitions caused by the crash of enemy drones and rockets were extinguished almost immediately.

One exception is the Kharkiv region, where, unlike most other areas, it is dry and hot.

In the recently incorporated Izyumske Forestry Management Unit, nearly 30 hectares of forest burned.

In particular, a large fire broke out in Starosaltivske Forestry, affecting 21 ha. The fire, as often happens, spread from adjacent self-seeded agricultural lands. The forestry’s territory is mined — the fire was accompanied by detonations of mines and munitions.

Another fire, covering 4 ha, occurred as a result of enemy shelling in Borivske Forestry.

The fire was quickly contained thanks to the use of new equipment—forest‐firefighting modules, that SFE “Forests of Ukraine” delivered this spring to the newly integrated forestry enterprises.

In the other regions, rainy and cool weather have so far favored the foresters. But summer has only just begun! Therefore, regional offices are continuing their fire‐preparedness measures.

Infrastructure

In just one week, the forestry units of Branch “Pivnichnyi Forest Office” established 412 km of mineralized firebreaks and carried out maintenance on 907 km. Over the past month, 1,400 km of firebreaks were created in the Kyiv and Zhytomyr regions. At the Branch “Tsentralnyi Forest Office”, 457 km of new mineralized firebreaks were laid and maintenance was performed on 2,000 km of existing strips. At the “Podilskyi Forest Office”, 13 observation towers were repaired.

Upgrading the Firefighting Equipment and Inventory

At the Branch “Slobozhanskyi Forest Office”, 517 pressure fire hoses, 400 backpack fire extinguishers, fire nozzles, and other items were acquired. At the forestry units of the Branch “Tsentralnyi Forest Office”, a batch of new forest-firefighting modules has arrived and is now being mounted on pickups. An additional six modules were delivered to the forestry units in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions. In the Sumy and Chernihiv regions, over the past week, foresters upgraded 26 piers at fire-fighting water reservoirs to improve water intake.

Personnel Training

In the past month at the “Tsentralnyi Forest Office”, 42 employees completed the “Forest Fire Incident Commander” course and 30 completed the forest firefighter training course. At the “Podilskyi Forest Office”, more than 200 lectures were delivered to the local community on proper conduct in the forest.

From 27 to 31 May 2025, a UFMA trade mission took place in Toronto, during which SFE “Forests of Ukraine” presented its own-manufactured products. Initial negotiations on potential export contracts began already during the event.

The company’s participation in the exhibition was initiated by Markiyan Vytvytskyy, a member of the Supervisory Board of SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” who serves as Vice President, Chair of Innovation and Technologies Committee of the Canada-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce (CUCC).

“At SFE “Forests of Ukraine”, there is significant potential in the field of non-timber forest uses, particularly in the production of eco‐food products. These are value‐added goods made from natural raw materials—essentially wild‐harvested. Such products generate high interest among Western consumers. Expanding export markets is not only a logical step but also an effective tool for diversifying the enterprise’s revenues,” said Markiyan Vytvytskyy.

The event brought together leading Ukrainian food producers, as well as representatives of Canadian retail chains, buyers, and importers. The trade mission was organized by UFMA in partnership with the Canada-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce, with the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in Canada, the international platform Nazovni.online, the Entrepreneurship and Export Promotion Office, and the national Diia.Business project.

The Canning Workshop of the Manevytske Forestry Management Unit of the Branch “Poliskyi Forest Office” successfully passed the competitive selection and met all requirements to participate in the mission. This enabled the enterprise to present its products to potential foreign partners.

Currently, the export portfolio includes preserves, jams, pureed berries without heat treatment, and freeze-dried products.

Eco‐products from Volyn have previously been present in the markets of Canada, Israel, Poland, Germany, and the United States.

It is worth noting that Canada was one of the first export destinations for the berry product line.

In Ukraine, these products are available at the “Lisovychok” recreational complexes or online at lisovychok.com.ua.

At the State Forest Resources Agency of Ukraine, another quarterly meeting was held between representatives of the agency and SFE “Forests of Ukraine” and representatives of the wood-processing industry and environmental organizations.

Topic: “Opportunities to increase timber harvesting volumes while adhering to all necessary environmental standards”.

The roadmap for addressing this issue was approved by the parties back in March at the SFE “Forests of Ukraine” forum in Zhytomyr. SFE “Forests of Ukraine” has consistently fulfilled its commitments to the market.

– The share of resources allocated to semiannual forward contracts has been increased to 30% (1.56 million m³ for the second half).

– Starting auction prices are now set based on actual sale prices (the “speculative” purchases for which no deliveries were made have been excluded). The period used to calculate starting prices has been extended (temporary price spikes are leveled out).

– Work on approving forest inventory materials has been significantly accelerated (almost 400,000 m³ has already been added to the harvesting fund, with a further 1 million m³ expected by year’s end).

– A transparent and competitive market for harvesting services is being established — contracts for 3.4 million m³ of timber have already been concluded through open auctions. If a contractor fails to fulfill its obligations, the enterprise reinforces its own harvesting crews by bringing the contractor’s employees onto its payroll.

The State Forest Resources Agency of Ukraine has done substantial work in refining the regulatory framework. A new regulatory act is now being prepared for Cabinet of Ministers approval, which will allow SFE “Forests of Ukraine” to add at least another 0.5 million m³ of timber to its harvesting operations in the future.

However, much work remains to be done to amend the legislation. Support from the business community for this process is very important.

As a result of the meeting, it was agreed to collaborate in the following areas:

– Strengthen work and coordinate efforts to address legislative regulation of the approach to conducting preparatory works for the special use of forest resources; deregulation in the forestry sector, particularly concerning the procedure for approving forest inventory materials and simplifying the procedure for conducting forestry activities on lands of the Nature Reserve Fund.

– Harmonization of current legislation with the provisions of Directive 2011/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011, and reforming the approach to conducting environmental impact assessments in the forestry sector.

– Methodological preparation for the transition to transformation felling aimed at conducting forestry according to close-to-nature principles, including with respect to forest inventory materials, as well as training specialized professionals.

– Expanding the practice of quarterly meetings with representatives of the wood-processing industry and environmental organizations.

At the premises of Kolomyike Forestry Management Union of Branch “Karpatskyi Forest Office”, a scientific‐practical seminar titled “Dissemination of Best Practices for Responsible Forest Management According to the FSC Standard for Ukraine” was held.

The event was organized by FSC Ukraine with the support of SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” NUBiP of Ukraine, and URIFFM (UkrNDILGA). Seminar participants—forest management staff, representatives of non-governmental organizations, certification bodies, and research institutions—discussed best practices for meeting FSC standard requirements related to environmental values such as Representative Sample Areas of Native Ecosystems (RSANEs) and High Conservation Value areas (HCVs).

Particular attention was paid to the results of a three-year project aimed at deep transformations in foresters’ approaches to ensure the long-term conservation of representative sample areas while also meeting society’s economic needs. Such areas are “living laboratories” where unique natural phenomena and ecosystem self‐regulation mechanisms can be observed, informing the development of effective management procedures for RSANEs and HCVs. At our forestry management unit, the successful integration of these procedures into the management system was demonstrated.

“It is gratifying to note the success of our joint efforts, for at the project’s outset our experts spoke of the various aspects of identifying, assessing, and conserving RSANEs and HCVs, and today we hear from responsible staff how these requirements have been implemented in practice as part of their daily work and established procedures,” said Pavlo Kravets, Director of FSC Ukraine.

Participants visited unique natural sites, including the genetic reserve of European beech, stands of beech forest dominated by common ivy (listed in the Green Book of Ukraine), and unique quasi-primeval silver fir forests over 150 years old.

“The best-practices project has once again demonstrated that a close connection between our foresters’ practical experience and experts’ scientific approach is key to responsible forest management. Combining the knowledge and experience of forest management specialists with expert insights allows us to develop effective procedures that transform valuable forest areas into resilient ecosystems capable of meeting today’s challenges, including climate change,” emphasized Halyna Domashovets, Head of the Forest Certification Sector, Department of Forest Management, SFE “Forests of Ukraine.”

The seminar once again confirmed the importance of combining a scientific approach with foresters’ practical experience for responsible forest management and the preservation of forest ecosystems for future generations.

This spring, at the Branch “Pivdennyi Forest Office”, it was decided to plant Pallas’s pine for the first time without first growing seedlings in nurseries!

The experimental method mirrors natural forest establishment and allows the trees to acclimate more quickly to site conditions.

To ensure a supply of high-quality seed, in 2023 the Branch “Pivdennyi Forest Office” acquired a modern conifer cone‐processing facility thanks to investments by SFE “Forests of Ukraine.”

At the same time, sufficient planting stock for forest regeneration has been grown.

As part of the experiment, 2.5 kg of Pallas’s pine seed material was sown over 1.4 ha. Nearly 70% of the seedlings have already germinated and begun to grow.

The approximate cost of afforesting such a plot with nursery‐grown seedlings is around UAH 18,600. Sowing seed reduces expenses by threefold!

There are many factors impeding the application of the new method – from soil characteristics to bird populations in the forests (which can damage the seedlings).

At the same time, establishing forest by direct seeding minimizes the costs of seedling preparation and cultivation and will increase the profitability of operations at the Branch “Pivdennyi Forest Office” of SFE “Forests of Ukraine.”

During the summer, several manual tending operations are planned for the forest cultures to oxygenate the roots and clear the site of weeds. If by autumn the survival rate of the forest cultures exceeds 50 %, the experiment will be considered successful. In the future, this will enable a substantial reduction in forest regeneration costs.

Next week, SFE “Forests of Ukraine” plans its largest military aid delivery since the start of the year. The 43rd Separate Artillery Brigade will receive five low-loader trailers for transporting armored vehicles.

The need for low-loader trailers, according to the military, is simply enormous. Equipment often has to be moved or evacuated to the rear for repairs.

Relocation of Western-model self-propelled howitzers and “Pions” for the artillery units can take up to two weeks. An application is submitted to the agency responsible for organizing logistics. Low-loader trailers are hired from private companies.

Long, expensive, and not always reliable.

Now, relocation—for example, from Zaporizhzhia to Sumy—can be completed within a single day. Equipment can be sent for repairs just as quickly.

The low-loader trailers procured by SFE “Forests of Ukraine” are designed to accommodate the full range of artillery systems.

The purchase was conducted via a tender with four bidders, resulting in savings of over UAH 3 million.

“We plan to deliver the trailers to the military as early as next week,” said Director General Yurii Bolokhovets.

Since the start of the full-scale invasion, SFE “Forests of Ukraine” has provided aid to the Armed Forces of Ukraine totaling over UAH 1.5 billion—more than 1,000 vehicles, including pickups, trucks, trailers, tractors, and fuel tankers. The enterprise also regularly supports sponsored brigades and mobilized personnel with drones (over 500 units), electronic warfare systems, and generators.

Today on Prozorro, an auction was held for the procurement of services to implement an ERP-type business process automation system at SFE “Forests of Ukraine.”

As we warned, the auction price could differ significantly from the expected amount. Two participants registered: one offered a price close to the anticipated figure, the other — UAH 88 million, which is almost three times lower.

Both participants  are well-known Ukrainian software developers.

The lower-priced proposal was submitted by the company Intelekt-Service (creators of ISpro, M.E.Doc, and other products). It is currently under review, and final decisions will be made based on its outcome.

Why is ERP important?

SFE “Forests of Ukraine” comprises over 1,500 forestries, nine regional branches, and 22,000 employees. The company manages nearly 7 million hectares of land and 250,000 fixed assets (vehicles, machinery, etc.).

Over 15 million documents are generated annually at the enterprise!

Meanwhile, the forestry enterprises incorporated into “Forests of Ukraine” have never had a unified system for data accounting, exchange, and organization.

The largest Ukrainian state‐owned companies (Ukrposhta, Ukrnafta, Ukrzaliznytsia) are already operating with ERP. In the forestry sector, such a system is being implemented for the first time!

Experience shows that, in its first year of operation, an ERP system optimizes company costs by 2–5% of turnover. For SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” this translates to at least UAH 500 million!

The funds invested in development and implementation will be recouped within the first year of operation. Thereafter, the company will only realize savings.

The implementation of ERP is a recommendation of the Accounting Chamber. The automated system, among other things, will facilitate the enterprise’s transition to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

ERP is the key to implementing investment projects—such as mechanized harvesting and the production of seedlings with a closed root system, among others.

All internal processes within the company will become more transparent. It will be far easier for regulatory bodies to conduct inspections and uncover legal violations. Concealing anything will be virtually impossible.

Through a personal electronic account, market participants will be able to monitor the execution of timber supply contracts and access any other information. Data collected by the system on the origin of timber will ensure compliance with the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

The project is planned for three years. The contractor must develop a system concept that meets all the requirements of SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” model the business processes, deploy and implement the system, and provide support and updates throughout the contract term. In addition, the contractor will conduct personnel training and test the solution in several branches. Finally, the system should be scaled to the company’s other units.

The Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine stated that its analysts had allegedly identified potential risks of inflating the expected cost of procuring services to implement an ERP-type business process automation system, as well as indications of discriminatory requirements being imposed.

In fact:

1.The feasibility study and calculation of the expected procurement cost were prepared by the Ukrainian Institute for Design and Development of Information and Telecommunication Infrastructure “Diprozvyazok” of the Administration of the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine.

“Diprozvyazok” provides a comprehensive range of services covering all stages of creating information‐communication and engineering infrastructure, from design and survey work and expert review all the way to commissioning of the facility.

The cost calculation was carried out by the Institute in accordance with the methodology approved by the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine.

2.The compliance of the developed feasibility study with the requirements of SFE “Forests of Ukraine” and legal regulations was confirmed by the expert opinion of the Institute of Telecommunications and Global Information Space of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

3.As of now, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine has not received any complaints from procurement participants indicating the presence of discriminatory conditions.

4.The expected cost may decrease significantly during the bidding process, so it is premature to draw conclusions about the final procurement price.

A delegation from SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” together with representatives of the State Forest Resources Agency of Ukraine, Ukrainian Research Institute of Forestry and Forest Melioration named after G. M. Vysotsky, and Ukrainian state forest protection enterprises, visited one of the regional directorates of „Lasy Państwowe” (State Forests) at the invitation of their Polish colleagues. During the meeting, the foresters exchanged experiences and discussed current challenges in the field of forest conservation and protection.

Points to Note:

1.Foresters detect forest fires, and the fire service handles extinguishing them.

Representatives of the Ukrainian delegation visited the forest protection workshop in the city of Radom. As at SFE “Forests of Ukraine,” the Polish colleagues have television surveillance systems, with cameras installed on fire observation towers. For extinguishing minor ignitions, there are forest firefighting modules mounted on pickups and handheld tools. If a fire spreads, it is extinguished by units of the State Fire Service of Poland. Polish foresters do not hire seasonal workers for the high fire‐danger period.

2.Within the regional directorate (analogous to our current branches) there is a dedicated agricultural aviation unit.

In each such unit, there are several small aircraft. Flights are organized to extinguish large forest fires and to treat stands and vegetation against pests. Treatment is carried out as needed, and the local population is notified in advance.

If a stand is already dying, a sanitary felling is carried out immediately. The EIA procedure is not required in this case.

3.All work in the forest, including firefighting, is performed by contracted organizations.

The establishment of mineralized strips and firebreaks is carried out by contracted organizations using their own equipment. The same applies to the planting and tending of forest cultures, mechanized harvesting, and even waste removal at recreational sites. The regional directorate only coordinates and supervises the execution of these works.

4.Anyone can become a forester: in Poland, Forest Training Centers have been established where one can complete courses in basic forestry professions.

One such facility is the Andrzej Zalewski Forest Education Center. Here, they offer training in specialties such as forest ranger, logging machinery operator, woodworking, and more. Upon completing the program, students receive a certificate and are able to seek employment.