21.05.2024

Europe's veneer industry meets for its general meeting in Hamburg

Bonn/Hamburg. With around 40 participants, this year's IFN General Assembly took place on May 15, 2024 at IFN member Ulrich Furniere in Hamburg. The agenda in the full house was varied and compact. Axel Groh, Chairman of the Board of Directors, opened the Annual General Meeting full of optimism for veneer, even if forecasts are becoming more difficult and bureaucratic requirements are sometimes becoming unbearable. The industry was able to close the past year on a positive economic note, even if 2023 will go down in history as the year of the capers. However, the industry is flexible when it comes to long-term planning and many companies had to make short-term decisions. The leading companies in the European veneer industry are also confident and cautiously optimistic for the current year. Outside of Germany, there are already clear silver linings on the horizon for the internationally active industry. In addition to the constructively discussed topics of EUDR and eco-balance, a digital offer to attract young talent was agreed. Guest speakers included representatives from the two organizations based on the Elbe, Greenpeace and the Von Thünen Research Institute. "Climate change can only succeed if we stand shoulder to shoulder with the findings and perspectives of science and NGOs," summarized Axel Groh, Chairman of the IFN Board of Directors. The two Hamburg-based companies Steinway Flügel & Klaviere and Lufthansa-Technik were also visited as part of the members' meeting. Steinway uses veneers to optimize the look and sound of its instruments, among other things, while Lufthansa-Technik uses them for attractive surfaces, for example in interior fittings or for furniture in its aircraft.

Initiative Veneer + Nature (IFN)
The Initiative Furnier + Natur (IFN) e.V. was founded in 1996 by the German veneer industry and its partners. Today it is supported by European companies from the veneer industry, the trade and the veneer processing industry as well as trade associations of the wood industry. The aim of the association is to promote veneer as a natural all-round material.

Further information about the IFN at:

furnier.de/en
wood-veneer-stories.de
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Picture: IFN General Assembly 2024 at Ulrich-Furnier in Hamburg. Photo: Julia Rösig

May 21, 2024

Initiative Furnier + Natur e.V. - Bonner Talweg 84 - D-53113 Bonn - m +49 171 1783 444 www.furnier.de - www.veneer.eu - presse@furnier.de

Picture: IFN General Assembly 2024 at Ulrich-Furnier in Hamburg. Photo: Julia Rösig