The American Forest Resource Council (AFRC) proudly welcomes RY Timber as its newest member. The company currently operates a stud mill in Livingston, Montana, and is one of the top structural lumber manufacturers in the state.
In the spring of 2020, RY idled its Townsend, Montana sawmill citing a lack of timber to run at full production. One hundred jobs were lost. The corporate office in Townsend remains open and the company anticipates restarting the Townsend mill once more federal timber becomes available.
“RY Timber is an important member of Montana’s wood products industry and we are excited to have them as our member,” said AFRC President Travis Joseph. “We look forward to working with RY to help improve federal forest management in Montana so this company and others can expand, hire more workers, and continue to produce high-quality lumber to meet America’s needs.”
“AFRC provides a service that is laser focused on increasing timber supply from federal lands. We remain hopeful that the association’s technical expertise and their strong legal presence in Region 1 will help improve Montana’s log supply problem,” said Ed Regan, Resource Manager at RY Timber.
The late Ron Yanke of Boise, Idaho formed RY Timber following his purchase of Wickes Forest Industries in the early 1980s. The Livingston mill was purchased from Brand-S Corporation in 1996. The Yanke family retains ownership of both RY Timber, Inc., and YT Timber, its land holding company.
Over the last forty years the Yanke family has operated sawmills in Montana, Idaho, Oregon and California. In addition to sourcing timber from U.S. Forest Service lands, RY employs a team of experienced foresters and loggers to assist forestland owners in land management and environmentally sensitive forestry.
AFRC advocates for sustained yield timber harvests on public timberlands to support rural communities and enhance forest health and resiliency. The association works to improve federal and state laws, regulations, policies, and decisions regarding access to and management of public forest lands and protection of all forest lands.