SFM Celebrates 21 Years of Forestry Innovation and Impact

From a single ute and a few big ideas, to managing 30% of Australia’s plantation carbon projects — Tasmanian-based SFM is celebrating 21 years of innovation, impact, and integrity in forestry.

Founded in 2004 by Tasmanian-born Andrew Morgan and David Wise, SFM has grown from humble beginnings into a national leader in sustainable forestry and carbon development. The company now operates across four states, manages plantation assets on behalf of institutional investors, and leads the country in plantation-based carbon project development.

The pair first met as students at the University of Tasmania — fittingly, over a beer at the UniBar — bonding over their shared love of the environment, business, and a healthy debate.

Morgan and Wise credit much of SFM’s success to their partnership.

“If Dave’s the accelerator in this partnership,” Morgan quipped, “then I’m probably the steering wheel — making sure we’re still pointed in roughly the right direction when he hits the gas.”

Reflecting on the early days of environmental consulting, Managing Director Andrew Morgan said the pair were agile and hungry.

“There was no big strategy at the time,” recalls Morgan. “Just a ute, a laptop that made strange noises, a few half-decent ideas, and people who believed forestry could be done differently — with integrity, long-term thinking, and a bit of grit.”

SFM was born out of that conviction and has never looked back. Over two decades, the company has built a reputation for forward-thinking forestry — from managing carbon assets at scale, to launching one of the world’s only underwater timber recovery operations, Hydrowood.

“Starting SFM wasn’t about following the rules,” said Managing Director of Strategy, Risk and Trading, David Wise. “It was about creating something we believed in — a company that could bring people together around forestry, innovation and impact. The work we do now with our brilliant team is practical, tangible and grounded in the real world, and that’s something we’re incredibly proud of.”

Future Focused Forestry

That ethos evolved into what the company calls Future Focused Forestry — a mindset that continues to guide the business.

“At SFM, we talk a lot about looking ahead; identifying opportunities, moving early, and taking a strategic leap while others are still deciding whether to jump,” said Morgan. “This mindset is part of our core DNA.”

The business has faced its fair share of challenges, including navigating the Global Financial Crisis, when many others were scaling back. In a bold move, SFM purchased the historic Battery Point property it had been leasing: a two-storey gothic residence in one of Hobart’s most iconic heritage precincts. It became the company’s headquarters — and the site of forestry’s most infamous Christmas parties.

Innovation with substance

Over the past 21 years, SFM has repeatedly stayed ahead of the curve:

• Among the first in private forestry to achieve FSC certification (2011)
• Created Hydrowood, salvaging high value, coveted Tasmanian timber from submerged forests
• Pioneered remote fire detection and digital forestry technologies
• Made early investments in carbon project development
• Developed innovative landholder models to integrate forestry into farming systems
• Expanded across regions and diversified its client base
  

  The pair celebrated SFM’s milestone at its ’21 Rings’ event this month alongside more than 200 industry stakeholders, clients, staff, family and friends.

“The thing that’s made SFM different is our willingness to look beyond convention,” said Wise. “We’re not just managing forests, we’re creating new models that work for farmers, investors and the environment.”

Their leadership has been recognised across the industry nationally.

“A lot of people in natural resources have just stuck to their knitting,” said New Forests founder David Brand. “But with SFM, there’s been a willingness to explore different investment models and economic models — to take forestry into the 21st century and position it as a real source of solutions.”

What’s next: scaling what works

Today, SFM is scaling up its impact across partnerships, landscapes, and regions.

“If the first 21 years were about proving what’s possible,” said Morgan, “the next 21 are about scaling it; scaling partnerships with farmers, investors and clients; scaling landscapes through replanting and restoration; and scaling environmental, economic and social impact through projects that show how forestry and natural capital can work hand in hand.”

“And we’ll keep doing it the way we always have — grounded, practical, and quietly ambitious,” he said. “Because the future of climate and nature-based solutions won’t be built by the biggest names or the boldest headlines — it’ll be built by people who stay the course and do the work properly.”

Wise agrees: “We’ve quietly built two businesses that are unique in their fields. Both SFM and Hydrowood prove that with the right people, values and perseverance, we can punch well above our weight.”

 

Media Contact:
Romany Brodribb
Communication & Engagement Manager, SFM
E: rbrodribb@sfmes.com.au  | M: 0438 368 079
www.sfmau.com