Utilization trend of wood species utilized in furniture industry in selected cities in Nigeria

Abstract

The utilization trend of four commonly used wood species and two lesser used wood species that are used for furniture making was examined. The wood species are Mansonia altissima (Mansonia), Khaya ivorensis (Khaya), Cordia millenii (Cordia) and Tectona grandis (Teak) as commonly used wood species; Aningeria robusta (Aningeria) and Gmelina arborea (Gmelina) as lesser used wood species. 154 small-scale furniture factories (SSFF), 28 medium-scale furniture factories (MSFF) and 11 large-scale furniture factories (LSFF) selected through stratified random sampling procedure in Lagos, Ibadan and Benin cities were considered for the study. The quantity (cubic meter) of the six wood species used in making interior furniture such as chair, table, bed cabinet, shelf, wardrobe cupboard and settee from 2001 to 2006 was obtained through a structured questionnaire. The study revealed that in SSFF, the utilization of Khaya, Cordia, Aningeria and Gmelina had been on the increase from year 2001 to 2006 while the trend for Mansonia and Teak did not follow a definite pattern. For MSFF, the trend showed that utilization of Khaya and Cordia increased from 2001 to 2004 and thereafter declined while that of Mansonia and Teak did not follow a definite trend for the 6 years considered for the study. However, Aningeria and Gmelina increased yearly from 2001 to 2006. For LSFF, no definite trend was observed in the utilization of Mansonia, Khaya, Cordia and Teak while Aningeria and Gmelina also increased yearly for the 6 years. The trend for the total wood utilization by the SSFF, MSFF and LSFF showed that Khaya was mostly used by the three scales of furniture industry, followed by Cordia while the utilization of Teak by the three scales of furniture industry was low for the six years of study. There is urgent need for a massive plantation establishment of Teak and Gmelina.