Disputes over lease conditions, land ownership, stumpage and royalty charges by the Native Land Trust Board or allegations against operators has been persistent problems for the forestry sector which has also been a huge stumbling block for the multimillion dollar Mahogany industry in Fiji.

These have been highlighted as the major issues facing the forestry sector in Fiji which derived erratic results from the sector over the past two decades.

Statistics provided to the delegates at yesterday's Food Symposium reveal that woodchips is the biggest earner in the sector with an annual average export earnings of $23.2 million.

The figures also show that production of native species has been on a declining trend surpassing 150,000 cubic meters only twice in the past two decades while production from plantation species has increased from 272,000 cubic meters in 1990 to 470,000 cubic meters in 1995, but production again declined for the next seven years to 294,000 cubic meters in 2008.

The stats show that despite the numerous problems, the Mahogany industry has been growing since production began in 1999 from 88 cubic meters to 80,000 cubic meters in 2008.

The poor management of the Fiji Hardwood Cooperation Limited has also been a factor that has hindered the development of the mahogany industry.