ESPEN was founded in 1992 in the wake of the United Nations Environment Conference in Rio de Janeiro.

The founding idea was to make high-quality forest products from environmentally friendly, socially responsible and economically viable forestry accessible to the German market. In particular, the detailed knowledge and experience of the co-founder and current CEO, Dipl.-Holzwirt Jürgen Jordan, about forestry in the southern hemisphere were and are the basis for the successful development of the company.