A Tradition Worth Buying Into.
There is something rather special about the recent Financial Times feature “Meet the modern-day Woodlanders.” 9th October 2026
Inspired by Thomas Hardy’s The Woodlanders, it travels through the woods, orchards and fields of Hardy’s Wessex to meet people still practising the rural crafts that once shaped this landscape - coppicing, hurdle making, cider making, thatching and charcoal burning.
Beautifully photographed by Dave Watts, it is well worth taking the time to read. These aren't simply portraits of disappearing country crafts. They show people whose work still depends upon an intimate knowledge of the landscape around them.
Hardy wrote about a world in which people's livelihoods and the woods were inseparable. Thankfully, some of those relationships still survive today.
As the FT observes of traditional coppice woodland:
“The ancient practice is almost too good to be true: a symbiotic relationship of craftsman and woodland that enhances both.”
But there is a harder truth behind these beautiful images.
Traditional crafts do not survive because we admire them. They survive because we buy what they produce.
Charcoal making is one of those surviving woodland trades. British makers are still working commercially in our woods, using material produced through coppicing and woodland management and turning it into high-quality charcoal.
The skills are still here. The makers are still here. The woodlands are still here.
And that is where this story suddenly becomes very modern. While we celebrate the survival of Britain's woodland traditions, the overwhelming majority of the charcoal we actually burn comes from overseas.
In 2024 alone, Britain imported more than 100,000 tonnes of charcoal - around 98% of charcoal used in the UK.
Research highlighted by the Back British Charcoal campaign also shows just how dependent Britain has become on imported supply - including charcoal coming from countries at greater risk of deforestation.
So there is a strange contradiction. We admire the charcoal burner working in a Dorset wood. We value the craft, the landscape and the knowledge represented in photographs such as those in the Financial Times. And then, when summer arrives, we can pick up an imported bag of charcoal without giving its origin or quality a second thought.
A Tradition Worth Buying Into
This is why the new Back British Charcoal campaign matters.
Its message begins with one very simple question:
We ask where our food comes from. Why don't we ask where our charcoal comes from?
If we want crafts like British charcoal making to remain part of our landscape, appreciation alone isn't enough. There has to be demand for what those craftspeople make. Every time someone chooses charcoal made in Britain, they are doing something very practical: creating a market for British charcoal makers and for the responsibly managed woodlands that supply them. That purchasing decision is what helps keep a centuries-old craft a viable modern business.
Read It. Then Look at the Bag.
So we would encourage you to do two things:
First, read “Meet the modern-day Woodlanders” in the Financial Times. Enjoy the writing and Dave Watts' wonderful photographs, and meet some of the people keeping the working traditions of Hardy's Wessex alive today - including Dorset Charcoal Company's Jim Bettle.
Then, next time you buy charcoal, look at the bag. Ask where it was made. Ask where the wood came from. And if you want British charcoal makers to be here for another generation, then Buy British Charcoal. Hardy's Woodlanders haven't quite disappeared.
Perhaps the best way to celebrate that is to make sure they don't.
Read & Act
Read the Financial Times feature Meet the modern-day Woodlanders explores the people keeping the traditional skills of the West Country alive today.
Back British Charcoal Find out why the provenance of charcoal matters, learn more about the British industry and discover how choosing British can help support its future.
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