SCA's forest holdings – a long history
SCA was founded in 1929, but our forest assets in northern Sweden have a history that stretches much further back in time. Today, we own 2.7 million hectares of land in northern Sweden, as well as in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, making us Europe’s largest private forest owner.
When SCA was established in 1929 by Swedish financier Ivar Kreuger, it served as a holding company for 16 forest industrial subsidiaries, all operating at the outlet of major rivers along the Norrland coast. These companies collectively owned 1.6 million hectares of productive forest land, which then became part of SCA.
Several of the subsidiaries themselves had histories dating back to the ironworks era of the 1600s and 1700s. One example is Galtström’s ironworks near Sundsvall, founded in 1673, which SCA regards as its cradle.
In the years following its establishment, SCA both sold and acquired various companies. At the turn of 1954/1955, all subsidiaries were merged with the parent company. Since then, SCA has conducted additional major acquisitions, such as the purchase of all shares in the partially-owned company Scaninge in 2003. This acquisition further expanded SCA’s forest holdings.
Today, SCA’s forest holdings amount to 2.6 million hectares of land in northern Sweden, of which 2.1 million hectares are productive forest land. In addition to the Swedish holdings, we also own nearly 100,000 hectares in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.
Swedish law affects forest purchases
Swedish legislation affects the ability of companies to purchase forest properties from private individuals and has done so since the early 20th century. The Corporations Prohibition Act was introduced as early as 1906, prohibiting forestry companies from acquiring arable land and forest land. It was later repealed and partially incorporated into the Land Acquisition Act, which came into effect in 1965.
The Land Acquisition Act governs who can purchase agricultural and forest properties, and in some cases, permission is required, particularly if the buyer is a legal entity or does not reside in the area where the property is located. For SCA, and other companies, this means that if we purchase forest land from a private individual, we must sell an equivalent amount of land to ensure that the proportion of our company-owned forest does not increase.
Read more about
SCA's map tool
In our map tool you can see SCA’ s land holdings in Sweden, including our voluntarily set asides and our five Conservation Parks. Here, you can find your own forest gem.
Managed forest
SCA's forests are actively and sustainably managed to increase growth over the long term. Today, the volume of living trees on our holdings is larger than ever. This is possible thanks to our forest management practices. High growth benefits both our operations and the climate.
SCA's history
Throughout history, SCA has built a well-invested value chain that maximizes the value of each tree. SCA was established in 1929, but the forest had been of great importance to the region long before that.