The Cardboard Box Economy Is Breaking Down
Summary
Ryan Knudson and Ryan December explore the collapse of the US pulpwood market, where falling cardboard demand and cheap imports have crashed prices. This crisis threatens Southern pine farmers like Bill Howard, whose livelihoods depend on selling thinned trees for pulp. With mills closing and land values shifting, growers face existential choices between abandoning forestry for solar or agriculture, or betting on emerging markets like sustainable aviation fuel.
Topics discussed
Introduction: The decline of cardboard usage and pulpwood value
Show intro and sponsor messages
How pine tree farming and pulpwood economics used to work
Market collapse: Mill closures and foreign competition
Interview with Bill Howard on the impact on family timber business
Alternative uses for pulpwood and land conversion risks
Emotional attachment to land and hope for the future
Outro and credits
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