The market for lumber in China is growing so fast the country could eventually rival the United States as B.C.'s No. 1 customer, predicts Forest Minister Pat Bell.

And the strength of that market, now buying 17 per cent of B.C.'s output, is what's keeping a number of Interior mills operating.

"China is hugely important," Bell said in an interview, noting the market has grown from "virtually zero six years ago."

A handful of Interior sawmills have remained running through the crisis in forestry, including Aspen Planers and Tolko Industries in the Nicola Valley. Interfor has also commissioned its new $100 million mill at Adams Lake.

"Aspen Planers is punching way beyond its weight class. You walk through major warehouses (in China) and you see a large amount of Aspen Planers lumber…. They've obviously focused their efforts."

China now has a wood frame building code, developed with help from British Columbia. A local building code in Shanghai "has really opened the door" to B.C. imports, Bell said.

Today the United States takes about half of B.C.'s lumber exports. But Bell said if Shanghai adopts rules that allow six-story wood frame buildings, demand would be so large "we'd never have to be a another softwood lumber negotiation (with the United States.)"

Demand exists for B.C. lumber for both home and apartment construction as well as for scaffolding.

A handful of Coastal mills are also producing metric sizes for specialized Chinese markets.

North American lumber prices are up about 25 per cent from a year ago and Chinese demand plays a large factor in that demand.

Current price sits at about $250 a thousand board feet. At a range of $270 to $280 "most of our mills are in a positive cash range," Bell said.