Economic Significance of Continued Improvement of Loblolly Pine Genetics and Its Efficient Deployment to Landowners in the Southern United States

The economic consequence of continuing or increasing the tree improvement efforts for loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) in the southern United States is immense. For the more than one million acres planted each year with germplasm from the North Carolina State University Cooperative Tree Improvement Program, the present value of continuing current tree breeding efforts and deploying the genetic gains to landowners is estimated to be more than $1.7 billion at current prices. The present value of increasing the rate of genetic gain from 1% per year to 1.1% per year is $211 million. These analyses can be used to justify maintaining and even increasing efforts in tree improvement. With the aggressive fourth-cycle breeding program underway and plans for fifth-cycle breeding and deployment strategies being developed, we have every reason to believe that this trend for at least 1% gain per year will continue for decades, provided the resources to continue tree improvement efforts remain available. Even a modest increase in genetic gain per year would be justification for stakeholders to invest more than $12 million per year to realize this gain. Study Implications Given the tremendous economic incentives to increase the genetic quality of loblolly pine seedlings to landowners, tree breeders will continue to improve breeding strategies and deployment options to ensure that plantations provide sustained value for decades to come. Although this analysis looks at the value gains from a landowner’s perspective, the financial gains from wood supply increases will be distributed through the wood-product supply chain and will likely affect future market conditions. Future mill capacity decisions will be affected by more productive forests (i.e., supply may help create more demand). Although increased wood supply does not always benefit landowners as a whole, those landowners who have planted higher-quality, faster-growing genetic stock should have a competitive advantage over other landowners who do not invest in better quality genetics.