Introduction
The illegal timber trade continues to pose a significant threat to the forests of Southeast Asia. A recent report by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), a UK-based environmental watchdog, has revealed that illegally sourced timber from Cambodia and Laos is still entering Vietnam's supply chains, despite recent efforts to strengthen legality controls.
The EIA Report
The EIA conducted a four-year investigation and found that well-established criminal networks are behind the illegal timber trade. These networks use methods such as falsified paperwork, manipulated harvesting quotes, and intermixing of timber from multiple sources to introduce illegal timber into formal trade channels.
“We repeatedly observed mechanisms through which timber from questionable sources could be incorporated into formal trade channels,” says Thomas Chung, forest timber campaigns lead for the EIA.
Vietnam's Role in the Timber Trade
Vietnam is one of the world's largest timber exporters and plays a key role in international supply chains, shipping around $17 billion in timber and timber products in 2025. Timber from neighboring Laos and Cambodia represents a relatively small share of Vietnam's total supply, less than 9% of all timber shipments into the country.
However, this timber carries an outsized legality risk that significantly undermines Vietnam's efforts to ensure legal sourcing. To maintain access to lucrative export markets, such as the US, EU, Japan, and China, the country has made several recent updates to its national timber legality framework, known as the Vietnam Timber Legality Assurance System (VNTLAS).
Conclusion
The EIA report highlights the need for Vietnam to strengthen its oversight and control over timber imports, particularly those from Cambodia and Laos. Furthermore, it is essential that countries importing Vietnamese timber demand guarantees that the timber is sourced from legal and sustainable sources.
Source / Reference: Mongabay