For those who are interested set out below is a letter that...

For those who are interested set out below is a letter that Ihave written to the editor of the AFR about an article on page 10 of todays AFR


I write to register my protest at the article on page 10 of the AFR but Caitlin O'Toole headed

"Forestry schemes tipped to drop 30pc'

This headline is not just misleading but is contrary to implications that can be drawn from the facts later detailed in the article. I think that this is quite irresponsible and poor journalism.

Speculation that there will be a 30% drop in investment relates to the whole MIS industry not especially the Forestry Industry.

Companies such as GTP who expect sales to be down are involved in the broader MIS market and not just Forestry. Even GTP have not actually said Forestry MIS sales will be down

Timbercorp and Willmot Forests have already announced to the market that their current sales for Forestry MIS are ahead of sales achieved at the same time last year. So where are the facts to support such a headline other than an anonymous claim in the penultimate paragraph which does NOT mention 30%

It is misleading at the least to lump together any problems that the non Forestry MIS have with the Forestry MIS.

I would have expected better from the AFR especially given the flow on effect that such reporting can have.

A clarification article would be nice especially after canvassing more of the interested parties so that a more informed view could be made