Introduction

The forest, as the world's main ecosystem, is strategic for the economy and the environment; it covers 31 % of the earth's surface, with 4 060 million hectares (mha), of these, more than 54 % are in the Russian Federation (815 mha), Brazil (497 mha), Canada (347 mha), the United States of America (310 mha), and China (220 mha) (^{FAO, 2020}).

Globally, the forest sector faces overexploitation and irregular agricultural expansion (^{FAO and PNUMA, 2020}). In this regard, globalization is an opportunity, since it eliminates trade barriers and improves trade-friendly policies, but it is also a challenge due to the lack of capacity to compete in foreign markets, to measure the impact on the well-being of the population, and to use natural resources, as well as to the corresponding legislation (^{Luján et al., 2016}). Because there is little organization for forest production, which affects both the environment and the community in general.

In 2019, the main timber consumers in the world were China (27 %), the United States of America (USA) (21 %), Germany (4 %), and Canada (3 %); while China (18 %), USA (17 %), Canada (9 %) and the Russian Federation (9 %) stood out among the producers. In Latin America, only the following stood out Chile for pulp for paper (3 %), and Brazil for industrial roundwood (8 %), wood charcoal (12 %), wood pellets and chipboard (6 %) (^{FAO, 2019}).

The American continent has a high percentage of forested areas and large forest producers; in 2015, it had 39 % (945 mha) of the world's forested area, of this, 59 % was concentrated in Latin America and the Caribbean. In 2020, it decreased to 932 mha; the five countries with the highest forest cover in that region were Brazil (497 mha), Peru (72.3 mha), Mexico (65.6 mha), Colombia (59.1 mha), and Bolivia (50.8 mha) (^{Cepal, 2020}). Although Mexico is among the five countries with the highest forest cover in the continent, it is not among the nations with the potential to stand out in this sector.

On the other hand, two thirds of the world's biodiversity are located in 12 countries known as megadiverse. Mexico stands out as the fourth nation in terms of species richness, this implies a potential for sustainable development which requires solid knowledge, and the development of capacities for its management (^{Sarukhán et al., 2017}). Furthermore, 70% of Mexico's surface area (137.8 mha) is forest land, 47.7 % is wooded area (65.7 mha), and, of this, 52 % is forest (^{Conafor, 2021}).

Puebla was one of the 10 states with the highest fluctuation in timber production in the period from 2003 to 2017. The states with the highest forest production between 2009 and 2019 were Oaxaca (1), Durango (2) and Michoacán (3), while the state of Puebla occupied the seventh place (^{Semarnat, 2020}).

In Puebla's primary sector, agriculture is the most important; however, the forestry sector is the second largest producer of fir logs (^{Inegi, 2021}). Region I of the Northern Sierra of Puebla (Huachinango-Chignahuapan-Zacatlán), located in the northwest of the state, is made up of 35 municipalities and currently has sustainable forest management with the highest production volume and forestry certifications (^{Inegi, 2017}; ^{CCMSS, 2020}). However, the area that was reforested in 2013 amounted to 6.2 %, and in 2018 it decreased to 3.6 % (^{Conafor, 2020}). For example, the volume of forest production authorized for 2016 in Region VII of the state of Puebla (Tehuacán and Sierra Negra) was less than 1 % of the state’s total; this region is located in the southwest of the state and includes 21 municipalities, among them Nicolás Bravo and Vicente Guerrero, with pine and oak trees. With respect to the products obtained, both municipalities contributed less than 1 % of timber and firewood; Vicente Guerrero stands out with 25 % of the state’s total production of charcoal, but there is no mention of its contribution to non-timber production. Of the 233 authorizations granted by the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources for timber harvesting, only one was for Nicolás Bravo, and four for Vicente Guerrero (^{Inegi, 2017}).

The forest value chain is composed mainly of two sectors: primary and industrial activities. Primary forest includes the production of plants or clones, planting (a key link in the chain, since this is where the raw material is generated), and forest management, which includes various silvicultural practices, harvesting, and log cutting. In industrial activity, solid wood (sawmill and plywood mill) and cellulose (production of cellulose and wood chips) chains stand out (^{Morales, 2021}).

Despite Mexico's great natural attributes, the forest sector has been experiencing several problems for decades. The reassessment of the forest sector in 2019 recognized the lack of competitiveness of forest activities, inefficient value chains and low levels of integration, insufficient forestry production to meet national consumption, low private investment and financing for its development, deforestation and degradation due to legal and illegal land use changes, fires, pests, and diseases, illegal logging and intervention by organized crime, insufficient alignment of policies, programs, and subsidies in rural areas, lack of support and local technical assistance, insecurity in rural areas, complex legal and administrative framework that hinders forest development, and insufficient fiscal budget, with a downward trend, among others (^{Conafor, 2021}).

In Region VII, the main sources of income for the population are free logging (without a permit) with overexploitation of the forest and labor migration; there is also self-consumption agriculture on forest and rainfed land with an unfavorable climate (^{Ávalos et al., 2007}).

Based on the above, the general objective of this study was to analyze the capacity of timber sector companies to adapt to environmental challenges in accordance with four of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN): number 5, equitable participation of women and men, and gender equity; number 8, on decent work and economic growth; number 12, on responsible production and consumption; and number 15, on life in terrestrial ecosystems. An additional objective was to analyze internal organizational changes and the adoption of new technologies, as well as demonstrate the knowledge of fiscal, legal, and financial strategies by forestry producers in Region VII.

Materials and Methods

Results

In the forestry sector, the presence of men prevails (67 %), except in the timber industry. The range of schooling was varied greatly, ranging from junior high school to university, with a predominance of secondary and high school education. More than 93 % of all companies surveyed are registered with the Tax Administration Service (SAT) as natural persons and have existed for more than 10 years (Table 1).

Regarding legislation in the forest sector and knowledge of the SDGs, more than 69 % of sawmills and timber companies stated that they were aware of Mexican laws in the forestry sector, less than 16 % of sawmills and final consumers are aware of the 17 UN SDGs, and 50 % of timber mills claim to be aware of them.

Among the respondents, more than 82 % favor sustainable forest management. 75 % of the sawmills even own forest land that has no governmental support, of these, 67 % carry out reforestation actions. The other sawmills have agroforestry systems under management and cover their operating expenses ―maintenance of fences, retentions, gullies, and pruning― with their own resources.

Timber companies and the end consumers carry out activities in favor of the environment, among which the separation of waste predominates (45 %). The majority of the three groups surveyed (88 %) support sustained economic growth guaranteeing sustainable consumption and production patterns.

According to the statistical tests, there is no significant correlation between known forest regulatory information and the acceptance of sustainable economies: Timber company’s correlation coefficient [CC]=0.522, significance = 0.083; Sawmill’s CC=0.153, significance= 0.554 (Table 2). That is, the behavior of one variable is not related to the behavior of the other variable.

In the last five years there has been an increase (42 %) in wood consumption by the end consumers; 87 % of these indicated that their strategic planning includes the environment, but when they buy wood their priority is the price (58 %), and that it is a legally established place (42 %) (Table 3).

Regarding organizational issues, 50 % of the sawmills and 83 % of the timber companies have an idea of their organizational structure and use a strategy to guarantee the supply of their material during the year; more than 81 % and 83 % use incentives for their personnel, among which bonuses vary from 50 to 62 %.

The end consumer’s staff are more willing to use new technology and materials (97 %). While for the timber companies, the percentage was 75 %, and in sawmills it was 56 %, which represents a little more resistance to change. It should be noted that more than 75 % of both sawmills and timber companies are family businesses, and more than 70 % are owner-managed.

Sawmills and timber companies do not have, nor are they in the process of obtaining any certification; and more than 50 % of timber companies buy their products from non-certified sources, and 75 % of sawmills buy their products from established but not certified sources.

In sawmills there is a moderate correlation between the use of some incentive to encourage their staff to adapt to new technology or material quickly (CC=0.545*, significance=0.035); this is related to the use of some strategy to guarantee the supply of material (CC=A 0.630*, significance=0.015). That is to say, incentivizing personnel is linked to their acceptance of new technologies, through the integration of tactics for the supply of inputs to continue working.

There is a moderate correlation between being certified and buying from a certified business (CC=M 0.707*, significance=0.019). In turn, in the end consumer, there is a weak correlation between personnel adapting to the use of a new technology or material quickly and buying in certified places (CC=0.346*, significance=0.033) (Table 4).

On the commercial side, the participants stated that timber sales were their investment priority (92 % for timber companies and 69 % for sawmills). For sawmills, the largest consumer are the timber companies (94 %), their market is construction (58 %) and carpentry (42 %). Of the three groups surveyed, in addition to dimension timber, the sawmill (63 %) does not process any other timber product; the other two groups (over 92 %) process plywood. Regarding non-timber forest products, sawmills (100 %) and timber companies (93 %) do not consider them, while the final consumer includes resin (53 %).

In regard to economic issues, the main financial source of timber companies comes from suppliers (57 %); all the timber companies and sawmills are aware of the profit margin, but not the final consumer (37 %). During COVID-19, 44 % of sawmills indicate that they benefited from the increase in the price of timber, as before the pandemic the price of it was undervalued. For 31 % of sawmills, the negative facet of the pandemic was that the processing of felling permits was delayed and the price of logs increased. Timber companies and end consumers also report being affected by the pandemic (60 % and 42 %, respectively) due to the increase in the prices of materials (Table 5).

Among sawmill personnel, 75 % know their sawmilling coefficient (m³ obtained from logs), however, only 50 % own a sawmill to retail their material. Results also showed that about 62 % of the squared timber is marketed within the state of Puebla, followed by Veracruz (31 %) and Mexico City (6 %). Most timber companies (83 %) sell non-wood materials such as Medium Density Fibreboard (MDF) and Melanin. For 42 % of the end consumers, wood is a priority for their activity, 84 % buy products such as MDF (54 %), Melanin (24 %), and Drywall (22 %).

About social issues (Table 6), more than 88 % respondents support gender equality and the number of employees from the region is more than 91 %.

Discussion

According to ^{Manfre and Rubin (2013)}, ^{Barrera et al. (2021)} and ^{Conafor (2021)}, women have few opportunities for social and economic development in the forest sector, as their legal and social status is not recognized, which negatively impacts the potential for fair and inclusive growth. Notably, it is important to strengthen and make women's work more visible, to open to employing them and integrating them into support programs that promote conservation, production, sanitation, and protection activities, thereby increasing the benefits of their participation in the value chain.

Despite the fact that respondents expressed acceptance of gender equality, this is not reflected in the practice, since only 7 % of sawmill staff and end consumers are women.

However, ^{Agarwal (2009)} and ^{Setyowati (2012)} cite that women contribute significantly to forest management through the performance of agroforestry activities, the collection of firewood and the manufacture of non-timber forest products. In addition, they note that in some countries such as Indonesia and Vietnam, women work in nurseries and are in charge of forest monitoring. In India and Nepal, on the other hand, increased participation of women in community forest management committees has been shown to benefit forest regeneration and forest governance.

In Mexico, a clear example of women's empowerment in the sawmill industry is the El Progreso sawmill in San Pedro el Alto, Pochutla, Oaxaca, which is managed by women and has forest certification. Another case is that of Alma Lili Mena García, the only woman in Mexico who is the director of a business association that exports timber products, and the first woman to be president of the La Ciudad de Pueblo Nuevo ejido, state of Durango (^{Conafor, 2017}; ^{Focir, 2019}).

From the nature of their activities, a mechanistic structure (strict hierarchy, rules, authority, and centralized control) prevails in most of the companies surveyed. However, they agree with sustainable economic growth, which demonstrates a bond between the physical and the social, linked by culture and technology that involves communication and performance to achieve growth in line with the changes in the world (^{Daft, 2011}; ^{Hatch and Cunliffe, 2013}).

With respect to fiscal, legal, and certification issues, ^{Semarnat (2018)} and ^{CCMSS (2020)} record that in the state of Puebla (2020) there are 11 ejido properties with Sustainable Forest Management (NMX) certification, and 13 properties have Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification, of which 12 are ejidos and one communal property; the Sierra Norte has the highest number of certifications in Puebla. Although most of the companies (timber and sawmills) in Region VII are legally established as natural persons, and lack FSC, Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), and NMX forest certification, which is a way of accrediting good forest management.

There is a greater commitment to nature on the part of sawmills and timber companies than on the part of the end consumer. However, in the sawmills, owners report problems such as a lack of government support for land regularization and program follow-up, delays in the execution of forestry procedures, illegal logging, unfair trade, and insecurity in the area. In addition, ^{Barrera et al. (2021)} and ^{Conafor (2021)} point out the lack of budget, staff and equipment in the institutions responsible for forest management, inefficient procedures for obtaining forest permits, complicated regulations for stakeholders, and inadequate response times.

Regarding financial and commercial strategies, the main interest of sawmills and timber companies is to continue investing in the sale of squared timber. The first group (sawmills) does not handle non-timber forest products, the woodworking industry does not include these products, but does include plywood and other agglomerates, while the final consumer (builder and carpentry) is the one that adapts more easily to products other than timber.

There is little diversification of sawmills, since non-forest products are not integrated. This is associated to the sawmill industry in northern Mexico. According to ^{Luján et al. (2016)}, globalization has had unfavorable impacts on profitability, competitiveness, administrative, and organizational culture, as well as on forest certification. However, ^{Castro et al. (2013)} indicate that the indigenous community of Nuevo San Juan Parangaricutiro, Michoacán, is an example of the evolution to achieve a forest cluster, since after the eruption of the Paricutín volcano, the community members changed their activities to obtain income, but realized that they did not have the expected benefits and that the natural resource was being irrationally exploited. As a result, innovative actions were implemented that integrated a balance between inhabitants, environment, and industry.

Outstanding features are the social-environmental bond based on the dynamics of its governance, the demand for forest products, and the situations for the availability of supply sources, as well as the vertical-horizontal industrial integration of the production system.

The members of the forest value chain face economic, environmental and social challenges. Forest degradation has been reduced, but not eradicated, by generating one conservation program after another; therefore, this issue calls for an initiative adapted to Latin American countries whose application will allow sustainable development. Such an initiative must be based on forest governance, in which the government and society work together to achieve sustainable development. An example of this is Mexico's participation in the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in which the country has committed to promote sustainable development by conserving and recovering the ecological balance.

Based on the FAO’s paper “Assessing forestry projects impacts: issues and strategies”, written by ^{Gregersen et al. (1995)}, and the Program for Sustainable, Inclusive and Competitive Forestry Development in the Peruvian Amazon of the ^{National Forestry and Wildlife Service (2019)}, the following solutions are proposed for some of the issues in Region VII of the state of Puebla (Table 7).

The care, sustainable, and inclusive use of the forest sector is strategic and should involve foresters, producers, society, academia, and government (Forestry Research Centers).

Conclusions

Despite explicitly ignoring the UN SDGs, there is a willingness in sawmills and timber companies to promote sustained economic growth, which is in line with SDGs 8 and 12 (Decent work and economic growth, and Responsible production and consumption, respectively), this is not expressed by the final consumer. Timber companies and sawmills are committed to and support activities in favor of the environment, with an impact on SDG 15 (Life of terrestrial ecosystems). The studied companies do not comply with gender equity participation (SDG 5).

In terms of organizational structure, both timber companies and sawmills have an idea of their organizational structure and use strategies to guarantee the supply of their material, and apply incentives for their personnel.

Both sawmills and timber companies lack certifications and are not in the process of obtaining them; their raw material comes from non-certified sources. In addition, the end consumer is unaware of and confused between certifications and being registered with the tax authorities. There are problems in adapting to new technologies due to the high cost of machinery. Companies are trying to protect and maintain forested areas, but lack technology and information.

All three groups surveyed had the capacity to respond to the economic challenges arising from the pandemic. The construction sector is economically strong and knows its profitability and productivity. However, a percentage of carpentry shops do not know their profit margin and are not up to date, so they choose low prices regardless of the legal origin of the timber. Sawmills benefited the most during the pandemic through the raise in prices, as they considered that their material was undervalued.

Some good policies and supports have reached the primary sector, but the lack of follow-up has caused discomfort, stirring up controversies that are reflected in the industrial sector, like those derived from the shortage of raw materials, along with a lack of interest by the end consumer in the environment and the origin of the items purchased.

Because the present study is exploratory in scope, the study subjects were not randomly selected, and the fact that it was conducted only in Region VII of the state of Puebla limits the generalizability of the results. Future research may expand the sample size, use proportional random sampling to ensure that each actor in this forest chain is representative, and include other states in the country.