Northwood closure renews calls for forestry action

According to Canfor, the pulp and paper sector is facing a structural shift as substantial new pulp production capacity comes online around the world, creating an oversupply that continues to drive prices lower. At the same time, ongoing challenges accessing fibre have contributed to what the company described as a prolonged period of unsustainable financial losses.

“We recognize this is incredibly difficult news that will have a significant impact on our employees, their families, the businesses that support our operation, and the communities where we operate,” said Canfor President and CEO Susan Yurkovich in a statement.

Yurkovich emphasized the closure is not a reflection of the workforce’s performance, noting employees have worked tirelessly to improve operations under increasingly difficult conditions. The company said affected workers will receive severance packages and that opportunities for redeployment to other Canfor facilities will be explored where possible.

The mill is expected to undergo an orderly wind-down before closing in late 2026.

The announcement has reignited concerns about the future of the forestry industry in northern British Columbia, where mill closures and production curtailments have become increasingly common over the past several years.

Standing outside the Northwood facility following the announcement, the federal Opposition critic for Pacific Economic Development challenged Prime Minister Mark Carney to make a resolution to the long-running Canada-U.S. softwood lumber dispute a top priority.

“Prime Minister, the people of Prince George have been patient,” Tamara Jansen said. “They’ve weathered very difficult years. They’ve continued investing in their businesses and their communities. They’ve waited for the assurances they were promised. Now it’s time for your government to make resolving the softwood lumber dispute the priority.”

Jansen argued Canada has weakened its own forestry sector by failing to create conditions for long-term investment and resource development.

“We are in a very weak position because we didn’t get our resources out to market. We didn’t invest in our companies,” Jansen said. “We aren’t as strong as we would like to be, but we could be if we would begin once again getting our companies some stability and some certainty.”

Prince George-Peace River-Northern Rockies MP Bob Zimmer echoed those concerns, saying the Northwood closure reflects broader issues affecting the entire forestry sector.

“There’s a lot of issues with getting our wood to market and making it affordable for our loggers and for our forest companies,” Zimmer said.

He called on the federal government to intensify efforts to negotiate a new softwood lumber agreement with the United States, arguing that trade stability would help restore investment confidence in the industry.

Zimmer also linked forestry activity to broader land management concerns, including wildfire prevention.

“You want to stop all these forest fires from happening in northern B.C., cut some of the wood down and use it for trees, and use it for paper and pulp,” he said.

While global oversupply was identified by Canfor as a key factor behind the closure, Zimmer said the loss of fibre availability is creating a cascading effect throughout the industry.

As lumber mills close or reduce production, less residual fibre becomes available for pulp operations. Since pulp mills rely heavily on byproducts from sawmills, the decline of one sector directly impacts the viability of the other.

“We lose the lumber mills first, and then we start losing the pulp mills because it’s residual fibre they used to make the pulp,” Zimmer said.

“It’s all this sort of sad chain of events. It slowly turns everything off.”

Industry observers have also pointed to growing competition from Asian producers, where technological advances have increased production capacity and improved pulp quality, adding pressure to traditional North American producers.

Both Zimmer and opposition critic acknowledged that many forestry-related policies fall under provincial jurisdiction, including forest management and fibre allocation. They urged the B.C. government to review forestry policies in light of the industry’s current challenges.

For Prince George, the closure of Northwood marks another difficult chapter for a sector that has long been a cornerstone of the regional economy. As workers face an uncertain future, political leaders are increasingly calling for coordinated action from both levels of government to address the issues they say are threatening the long-term sustainability of forestry in northern British Columbia.

Pattison Media is owned by Jim Pattison Industries, a majority shareholder of Canfor.

by Cheryl Jahn

Northwood closure renews calls for forestry action

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