Secondary forests are an increasingly important component in the neotropical landscape matrix. As deforestation rates in many Latin American countries continue to be high, secondary forest resources may contribute to timber supply. By using a process-based forest growth model, we studied the prospect of secondary forests in eastern Paraguay for sustainable timber harvesting under different logging and fragmentation scenarios, respectively. The timber yield is low under all scenarios (0.75-1.73 m³ ha-1 per year). Only silvicultural treatments may increase the commercial value of secondary forests. For large landholdings, labour and capital-extensive land use systems such as secondary forest management may be an option to diversify farm income. This particularly holds for Paraguay facing an increasing scarcity of timber resources.