The Chemical Fingerprint of Wood: Every Tree Reveals Its Origin
Where does the wood we use really come from? In a global context where the sustainable use of natural resources is increasingly urgent, answering this question is essential. Timber is a widely used raw material, and its illegal trade causes serious damage to ecosystems and biodiversity. Yet reliable tools to verify its geographical origin remain limited. A new study, conducted by Eco Research in collaboration with the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, explores a concrete and effective solution: an approach that combines multi-element and isotopic analyses with advanced statistical models. The investigation focused on three typical tree species from the Eastern Alps – Norway spruce, European larch, and Swiss stone pine – grown on diverse bedrock types.
The results are promising: each species shows a distinctive chemical fingerprint, and the strontium isotopic ratio reliably reflects the geology of the growing area. This enables high-precision identification of both species and origin of each sample. The study opens new perspectives for the application of these techniques by regulatory authorities to verify timber origin, or by producers themselves to support certified supply chains.