besse forest products closes three veneer, lumber operations

Officials with Michigan-based Besse Forest Products recently announced the closure of three plants in Wisconsin that will result in more than 130 employees being laid off. The mills affected are Goodman Veneer and Lumber, Goodman, Wis., 48 employees and a sawmill that dates to 1909; Wisconsin Veneer and Plywood, Mattoon, Wis., 42 employees; Birchwood Manufacturing, Rice Lake, Wis., 46 employees.

The move comes after Besse Forest Products was sold to the Florida-based Hoffmann Family of Companies private equity firm in March 2024, and the company seeks to lower costs across its 10 newly acquired production facilities. Officials with Besse Forest Products said the closures were “due to an unprecedented industry downturn.”