The first forest owner association was formed in Halland in 1913. Rapidly thereafter, several county associations were formed in Skaraborg, Kronoberg, and Kalmar. In 1926, the Smålands Skogsägareförening was formed through a merger of county associations. This was the beginning of a series of mergers that have enabled today’s Södra to grow geographically.
The Larger Forest Owners Took the Lead
The forest had significant economic importance, especially for larger forest owners – they were the primary ones feeling the impact of the 1920s downturn. Forest owners were at the mercy of representatives for pulp and sawmills, who controlled the rules for timber prices and demand. The larger forest owners had experience in advocating for their interests and operating in official contexts, therefore they spearheaded the formation of forest owner associations. During the 1920s, smaller forest-owning farmers weren’t greatly interested in the forest as a source of income. They used their properties diversely. They harvested for personal needs and let their livestock graze on the lands.
A contribution was required to join a forest owner association, which was generally based on the holding of productive forest land and paid through deductions on timber settlements. The percentage long used for the South-Eastern Federation, and later Södra, was 4 percent of the net timber settlement, with a limit that no more than 10 percent of the total contribution obligation needed to be paid in a year.
The Start of Södra
Five southeast Swedish forest owner associations and the South-Eastern Sweden Forest Owners' Association’s Federation, which counts as the start of Södra, form on February 18, 1938.
War time increased the number of members in forest owner associations. Through the logging of firewood, the representatives came in contact with farmers and could talk about the advantages of belonging to a forest owner association. It was also in the farmers' interest to be members of the association tasked with organizing and managing firewood logging. At the beginning of 1940, the South-Eastern Federation had 4,394 members; by the end of 1949, membership had increased to 18,098. The total forest area among members was 831,260 hectares.
The Final Merger
In 1964, the final merger occurred when the South-Eastern Sweden Forest Owners' Federation merged with the forest owner associations of Jönköping, Halland, and Älvsborg to form the Southern Sweden Forest Owners' Federation. The federation later changed its name to Southern Forest Owners the same year. At the time of the merger, the South-Eastern Federation had a comprehensive division into forestry areas. This system was introduced into the new association, divided into 125 forestry areas and twelve regions.
In 1992, Skåne's Forest Owners joined, and on January 1, 2007, Bohuslän and Dalsland also became part of Södra.
