Harvesting costs in Sweden increased by 9% in 2023, according to new statistics from the Swedish Forest Agency and Skogforsk. Since 2017, costs for regeneration harvests have risen annually, totaling a 39% increase. During this period, the producer price index climbed by 41%.
In 2023, the average national cost for harvesting (in current prices) rose to SEK 134 per cubic metre for regeneration harvest, a 9% increase. Thinning costs increased by 8% to SEK 269 per cubic metre. In northern Sweden, regeneration harvest costs surged by 12%, while in southern Sweden, they increased by 6%.
Both regeneration harvest and thinning costs reached their highest levels since 1996, when these statistics were first recorded. Since then, the cost of regeneration harvests has increased by 48% and thinning costs by 76%, compared to an 84% rise in the producer price index during the same period.
Bild: Cost of regeneration harvest and thinning, 1996 - 2023, current prices / Swedish Forest Agency and Skogforsk
Most costs for silvicultural measures also rose in 2023. Clear-cut cleaning costs increased by 4% to SEK 1,840 per hectare. Scarification costs went up by 7% to SEK 3,190 per hectare, while planting (including plants) saw a 15% increase to SEK 7,050 per hectare. Sowing costs decreased by 2% to SEK 5,870 per hectare. Precommercial thinning costs rose by 15% to SEK 3,340 per hectare, and fertilization and liming costs increased by 12% to SEK 3,800 per hectare.
