About Us
We're more than a wood products company. We're an employee-owned team committed to sharing our success with our customers, communities, and each other.
Our Values: S.A.W.S
Our Mission: “To significantly serve our customers, employee owners and their families, our communities and natural resources.”
Our Story
Building Something Better, Together
Columbia Forest Products began in 1957 with a simple but powerful idea: build a company where people share the success and make products the right way.
Our founder, A. J. “Andy” Honzel, Sr., along with a small group of investors and a dedicated crew, reopened a closed plywood mill in Klamath Falls, Oregon. What they created wasn’t just a manufacturing operation—it was the foundation for a different kind of company.
As an employee-owned company, Columbia’s commitment to quality is personal. Our employee-owners have a stake in the products we make, the customers we serve, and the natural resources we rely on.
65+ Years of Experience
Employee Owned since 1957
Committed to Responsible Forestry
200M+ PureBond Panels Produced
Columbia Forest Products: History
1957-1963
Klamath Hardwoods starts with 43 employees in 1957 and is purchased by Columbia Plywood Corporation in 1963.
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1976
After purchasing Indian Head hardwood veneer operations in Presque Isle, Maine and Newport, Vermont. Columbia Corporation sold the company to its current owners (ESOP), who changed the name to Columbia Forest Products, Inc.
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1990
Over several years, Columbia Forest Products expanded by acquiring or building several hardwood plywood and veneer plants. Including: Old Fort, NC, Chatham, VA, and Craigsville, WV.
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2000
Further expansion into Canada with the development of Hearst and St. Casimir mills. Acquired hardwood veneer mill in Mellen, WI in 2000.
2007
PureBond soy conversion project completed across all operations. Offering a brand new, no-added formaldehyde option to the market. Columbia receives United States Environmental Protection Agency 2007 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award.
2008
Columbia supports, advocates in favor of a strengthened Lacey Act to include wood to usher in concept of "Due Care" for legal timber procurement.
2010
Hardwood Forestry Fund Gifford Pinchot Award received for Columbia's outstanding efforts to support sustainable forestry and to conduct its business in the best interests of the environment.
2016
The Columbia Foundation is launched to further support and significantly serve employees, communities, and natural resources.
2025
200 million PureBond® panels produced since its inception. 27+ years of FSC® chain-of-custody and forestry management success achieved.
2026
Columbia Forest Products forms its Pallet Segment through the aquisition of JC Pallet and PRO Pallet LLC, further diversifying its product mix.
