27.02.2026
How can we ensure the economic, ecological, and commercial sustainability of the tropical timber industry in a context of profound change? ATIBT's LKTS 2030 strategy proposes a paradigm shift based on diversification, innovation, and matching forest resources to market demand.
What are LKTS?
Lesser Known Timber Species (LKTS) refer to tropical species whose commercial potential remains underexploited. Long focused on a limited number of leading species, the tropical timber trade has generated increased pressure on certain resources, leaving significant potential within forest concessions unexploited.
LKTS now represent a major strategic opportunity: they enable revenue diversification, optimize forest management, and strengthen the resilience of companies in the face of market developments and regulatory requirements.
ATIBT's commitment
For several years, ATIBT has been working across the entire value chain to promote the gradual integration of LKTS.
Initiatives such as « Essences à Haut Potentiel de VALorisation » (EHPVAL), the « Appui au Secteur Privé - Pacte Vert » (ASP-PV), and « Appui au Secteur Privé du Marché Intérieur du Bois » (ASP MIB Congo) have highlighted the still largely untapped potential of lesser-known species. This work now forms the basis for a more in-depth analysis phase aimed at refining their technical and commercial positioning.
The objective is now to gradually transform technical knowledge into concrete commercial opportunities and to structure credible and economically viable diversification.
The LKTS 2030 strategy
To firmly establish LKTS in the industry, the 2030 strategy is based on four complementary areas :
Fully integrate LKTS into management plans to reduce pressure on traditional species.
Secure processing methods and develop products with higher added value.
Structure a clear offering, strengthen promotional tools, and facilitate international business connections.
Ensure traceability and verifiable sustainability, in line with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and international standards.
A paradigm shift
Promoting LKTS is not a matter of adding species to the existing catalog. It marks the transition from a concentrated model to a diversified portfolio approach, based on knowledge, innovation, and a constant balance between resources and demand.
As an industry platform, ATIBT plays a unifying role: it coordinates producers, processors, importers, and institutional partners to support and structure this transition towards a more balanced tropical timber industry.
By 2030, LKTS will no longer be seen as mere alternatives, but as species in their own right within the commercial tropical timber portfolio. Gradually structured, better characterized, and supported in their market entry, they will contribute to a more balanced, competitive, and responsible industry, a dynamic that ATIBT is committed to supporting and structuring.
