Abstract
Starting in the 2010s, demand for domestic wood shifted away from solid toward laminated wood products. Insufficient research has been done regarding how forested regions have responded to this change. Thus, this study focuses on the case of the log auction market and sawmill belonging to HOLZ-Mikawa in Aichi Prefecture. To this end, market sales slips were analyzed to identify the market’s response, and interviews were conducted at other sawmills and log auction markets as complementary measures. Results showed that the HOLZ-Mikawa wholesale department consolidated market transactions that maintain the sales channel for its traditional small orders from local sawmills by auction, as well as for demand from customers outside the prefecture by negotiation. Moreover, a new negotiation transaction was started with the HOLZ-Mikawa sawmill department, which had moved away from its primary business of managing orders from union members to lamina production for laminated wood materials. In doing so, new and diverse sources of demand―separate from local and non-prefectural demand―were created. In response to this demand shift, the firm flexibly reformed its materials wholesaling function and processing function, which may have played a role in suppressing material prices in the Higashi-Mikawa region.
