Agricultural production and policies have shifted due to global competition, forcing U.S. producers to compete in a world market where labor costs are a fraction of ours. In response, U.S. agriculture has intensified on the best lands, and marginal lands are reverting to forest or development. While our currency is strong, we are importing more of our food and fiber. If this should change, or if world politics should destabilize, we may need local farms and forests to produce food and fiber. By allowing these marginal lands to revert to forests without active management, we are missing a great opportunity to secure future supplies.
Society wants sustainable forests.
We're finding that sustainability is hard to define and probably harder to achieve when you consider interactions among biophysical, social, and economic systems. Nevertheless, society wants sustainable forests, and government agencies, regional coalitions, and the forest products industry are searching for holistic and sustainable strategies. If society remains committed to the journey, however, changes in consumer spending, price structures, resource management strategies, and product offerings may be ahead. Information technology is exploding. Technology has transformed our lives and our landscapes.