As it stands today, A.W. Jenkinson Forest Products is a large network of companies specialising in animal bedding, wood co-products and transport. But despite its size and the multitude of services and products it offers, it all began with a single, simple, innovative idea.

From unwanted leftovers to an indispensable resource

It was in the mid-1960s that our founder, Allan Jenkinson first struck upon the idea to collect the unwanted sawdust from various saw mills dotted around Cumbria, and transport it directly to nearby farms who would use it as bedding for their livestock. Armed with a single tractor and trailer, Allan’s idea transformed the traditional supply chain for local agriculture; and soon demand grew for a timber by-product that would have otherwise been thrown away.

An old by-product transformed into new opportunities

Before long, the demand for saw dust outstripped what local saw mills could supply. New sources of raw materials had to be found further afield. Eventually this led to other opportunities, where even scrap and recycled wood was shredded for board manufacturers, paper mills or biomass-fueled power stations!

An environmental philosophy, right from the word ‘go’

This unique approach to recycling an ‘unwanted resource’ was ahead of its time, pre-empting the environmental thinking of today. In fact, Allan’s vision for maximising the uses of timber in all its forms has remained a core principle at A.W. Jenkinson Forest Products. It is this kind of philosophy which has led to new and varied niche offerings as the company grew.