Why do companies based in paper products (toilet paper, paper towels, plates/bowls, etc) use trees for their products, instead of faster growing plants like bamboo or hemp?

Question

Using plants that grow quicker and use less water seems like a better business decision to me.

In: 211

Answer 1

> Using plants that grow quicker and use less water seems like a better business decision

Water for forestry comes from the air, nothing else. Rain and humidity is important.

Grow quicker only matters if you can use the result for anything valuabel. Softwood is used for lumber, which gives a better return. The rest is used for paper/board, but the money is in lumber. You can’t use hemp for lumber.

And then there is land use. Hemp is an agricultural plant, it grows on farm land. Trees grow (also) where you cannot farm, due to the terrain/soil/distance.