Laois businessman elected as new chair of forestry group

Forest Industries Ireland has elected Managing Director of Laois company CJ Sheeran, Mark Sheeran, as its new Chairman.

A part of Ireland's largest lobby and business representative group, Ibec, Forest Industries Ireland(FII) advocates for sustainable growth, innovation, and investment in Ireland’s forestry sector.  

Mark Sheeran succeeds Chief Executive of Balcas, Brian Murphy, who served a very successful term as the inaugural Chairman of Forest Industries Ireland(FII).

The Chief Executive of Ireland’s largest pallet manufacturer brings a wealth of experience and leadership to the role. CJ Sheeran Ltd is also the owner of Coolrain Sawmills, giving him valuable insight into the timber supply chain from raw material to finished product.

Director of FII, Mark McAuley, welcomed the appointment.  “The council of FII is delighted to announce that it has elected Mark Sheeran as its new Chairman. Mark brings a huge amount of experience and energy to the role," he said. 

Mark is deeply committed to strengthening the entire forest products supply chain and building on the commercial success of an industry that has expanded significantly over the last two decades, driven by a growing supply of raw material and the ambition of family-owned firms which lead wood processing across Ireland.”  

“This experience aligns well to Forest Industries Ireland’s commitment to supporting the continued growth of the Irish forest sector. We need to boost tree planting rates in this country if we are to realise our environmental ambitions and secure Ireland’s world-class timber supply for many years to come,” said Mr McAuley. 

In accepting his new role, Mark Sheeran said: “As the new Chairman of FII, I have strong hopes for the continued expansion of the forest products sector.

Ireland enjoys key competitive advantages—particularly our ability to grow fast-growing conifers and access large markets in the UK and Continental Europe with high-quality, competitively priced timber products."

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Mr Sheeran said "I’m also passionate about ensuring the sector fully embraces its environmental and climate-related potential. Forestry and timber products are essential components of Ireland’s growing bioeconomy and make a major contribution to achieving our climate action goals.”