"Panama has the first teak processing plant in the region."

Writing

Panama has the first high-capacity and precision teak processing plant sourced from forest plantations.

Ecotopia Teak, which inaugurated the plant on January 28th in the town of Chepo, is chain of custody certified by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) with the capacity to process 1,300 40-foot containers annually for certified premium markets.

Panama participated last year with FSC-certified wood producers in the launch of the country brand 'Panama Teak' during Dubai WoodShow 2022, which generated orders for Panamanian participants," highlighted Carmen Gisela Vergara, General Administrator of the Authority for the Attraction of Investments and the Promotion of Exports, Propanama.

This investment (the plant) represents a significant innovation for our country, as it enables us to export products with high domestic added value, introducing knowledge and technology transfer to export timber, which must also meet the highest international environmental standards, to open up new market sectors in Europe, Asia, and North America," stated Vergara.

Meanwhile, Bianca Morán, Administrative Manager of Ecotopia Teak, during the inauguration ceremony of the 2023 teak export, explained that this plant allows them to reach European markets with a stabilized, precision, and high-quality finished product, not just raw materials.

The importance of adding value to export products, as Ecotopia Teak does, lies in diversifying export offerings and creating new jobs in rural areas with a high level of training, thereby providing well-being to the populations.

Luis Frauca, President of the Union of Industrialists of Panama (SIP), emphasized, 'We value this effort of innovation and investment, especially the projection of adding value to what is exported, rather than exporting it in raw form, because it adds greater value to exports and elevates the level of technological advancement in the country.'

Similarly, Víctor Pérez, President of the Panamanian Exporters Association (APEX), stated, 'It is very gratifying to see how in Panama we are evolving from exporting raw materials to being able to export certified value-added products, such as processed wood.'

Juan Carlos Palacios, Executive Director of the Sustainable Forest Management Corporation of Ecuador, stated, 'This investment in Panama and for the region is a starting point because this company is an example, not only for Central America but also for South America, as it is one of the few factories that produces certified value-added wood. It reduces our dependency on markets like Asia for selling our production.

The General Administrator of Propanama also mentioned that this year they will participate alongside Panamanian companies in this fair to promote, through the increase in exports, job creation with knowledge and technology transfer.