Forest360 director Marcus Musson on the challenges facing the industry and what’s in his shed

Forest360 director Marcus Musson.

New Zealanders often hear about farmers being the backbone of the country but do we really know what makes the primary industries tick?

With that in mind, The Country’s Kem Ormond has compiled a list of questions for everyday Kiwis in agriculture.

This week it’s the turn of Marcus Musson.

Musson is a director of Forest360, a company that manages forests all over New Zealand for clients ranging from small farm woodlots to large corporations and councils.

He has been in the forest industry for almost 30 years and worked for a number of companies around the country.

Musson said while he was based in “paradise” – Whanganui – Forest360 had offices nationwide.

He said he had been part of the business since 2006.

“So, firmly part of the furniture, albeit I’m probably getting due for a reupholster!”

• If you would like to be part of The Country Fast Five series get in touch with Kem at kem.ormond@nzme.co.nz or fill in the form here.

What excites you about each day? What gets you up in the morning?

I love the forest industry, the people, the gear, the tech, the complexities, the opportunities and even the smell.

There’s nothing like getting out in the forest early in the morning as the sun and the mist rise and watching the whole forest wake up.

Unfortunately, I don’t do that as much as I would like as I spend a fair bit of time chasing a pen around a desk, but even from behind the desk there’s plenty going on.

We have built a great team and I’m lucky to be able to work with people like that – we have some bloody good office banter.

What’s the biggest challenge your industry is facing – right now, or into the future?

We have been riding the China wave since 2008 but unfortunately, we’re getting pretty close to shore and the wave is getting smaller.

It’s a market that has taken up to 25 million m3 of logs per annum which is likely going to be 12-15 million m3 going forward.

This puts us in a bit of a pickle with oversupply and Economics 101 dictates that the only way that is sorted is through lower pricing.

Biofuel will likely be our knight in shining armour and will turn the lower export grades into fuel but this is still a few years from happening at scale.

At the same time, inflation has hit us hard and, as we are a fuel-heavy industry, our inflation rates have been above CPI.

Like all other primary industries, this is all resulting in margin squeeze but there’s not much left to be squeezed.

What’s in your shed?

I’m a classic petrolhead.

I’ve got a penchant for classic cars and have a 63 Cadillac Fleetwood, a 78 Ford F250 pickup and an 83 Fairmont.

I’ve had the caddy for around 12 years and the F250 for six or so.

The Fairmont is a recent project with my sons which is going to be an old-school touring car tribute.

My sons have also inherited a TEA28 Fergy, a 1948 International harvester and a TD6 dozer from their grandfather which are mainly operational.

I love spending time in the shed with the boys arguing over who lost the 10mm socket.

What does our environment mean to you?

Foresters are tree huggers by nature and contrary to what some may purport, the environment is extremely important to us and fundamental to our future.

We are seeing a lot of advances in harvesting technology which is helping us protect riparians and waterways are top of mind in both harvesting and establishment.

Forests play a massive part in protecting water quality, providing diversity and land stability and I get a huge sense of satisfaction watching a forest grow and provide habitats for native birds etc.

Without a sustainable environment, we’re all pretty buggered really and trees are a massive part of that sustainability story.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

As with anyone, life’s pretty busy between work and family so you have to make the most of any spare time.

I’m lucky that my family likes the same things I do so we spend a bit of time on dirt bikes and throwing spanners at each other in the shed.

Taupō is my happy place and we try to get up there as much as possible and donate lures to the fishing gods.

As a family, we’re pretty good at converting fuel to noise so if we’re not on a bike or in a car, we’ll likely be on a boat.