The forest area in Europe currently amounts to 227 million ha, accounting for 35% of the total land area. The extent of forest cover varies across European countries. While the most extensive forest cover (54%) is found in Northern Europe, South-East Europe is the least forested region in Europe (32%) (State of Europe’s Forests 2020).
France is the fourth country after Sweden (28.0 Mha), Finland (22.4 Mha) and Spain (18.6 Mha) in terms of forest area. (Global Forest Resources Assessment, FAO, 2020). In France, production forests account for 95% of the total forested area.
| Quantity | Area (1,000 ha) | Share of total land area | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest land | 17,473 ± 73 | 32% | Area >0.5 ha, min 20m wide, min. crown cover of 10%, min. height of trees 5m maturity in situ. See this page | |
| including |
16,553 ± 79 | 30% | Forest available for wood supply | |
| |
927 ± 38 | 2% | Forest non available for wood supply (protection status, military area, inaccessibility) | |
| Other land | 37,464 ± 104 | 68% | All land that is not classified as forest land | |
| Total land area (forest + other land) | 54,944 ± 10 | 100% | ||
To learn more about the French forest and its evolution through time, read this article.
