A Union representing forestry workers is questioning whether the Minister of Forestry, David Carter, is doing enough to help the domestic wood processing sector.

National Distribution Union general secretary, Robert Reid, says the Union is frequently dealing with wood processing job losses as processing sites go under.

He says it is now getting to the point where there may not be enough domestic processors left to manufacture the wood for the Christchurch rebuild.

However, last week David Carter told Country 99TV that the wood processing sector’s fortunes are actually looking up.

Mr Carter says investor confidence is returning to timber and wood products with a new pine resins plant in Kaingaora, and a cross-laminated timber plant being built in Nelson.

Further, Mr Carter says the government is doing its bit to help.

"We’ve been working very closely with the industry since I became the Minister. We’ve been working with the industry trying to get all the different facets of the industry prepared to work together to strategise about what they need to do to take this industry forward."  

Forestry is New Zealand’s fourth largest export earner generating $4 billion of export receipts annually.