Domtar Inaugurates Its Second Generating Unit at Windsor Mill

“Greenwashing” is now a term most of us are familiar with. It means “the practice of making an unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product, service or technology.” Terrachoice[i] found that over 95% of “greener” products commit one or more of the seven “Sins of Greenwashing,” so it’s a major problem in the marketplace. Paper products in particular seem to suffer from many unsubstantiated and vague claims, especially when it comes to corporations trying to promote electronic services over paper-based communications. The bottom line is that corporate marketers need to follow certain specific guidelines for environmental marketing, such as those published by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission[ii], and in Canada by the Competition Bureau of Canada[iii]. If they don’t, their company could face corrective action by the FTC[iv]. The International Standardization Organization (ISO) also has a series of standards on environmental declarations (ISO 14020) and has classified environmental claims into three categories – Type I, Type II and Type III.

Cascades Sonoco, a joint venture between Cascades Inc. and Sonoco Products Company, today announced that its FlexSHIELD® coatings have received third party certification for compostability from TÜV Austria. Additionally, the coatings have achieved recyclability and repulpability certifications from the Fiber Box Association. FlexSHIELD’s aqueous-based barrier coatings are designed for use in folding carton, cup, and foodservice container applications, where scoring, folding and heat sealing often create major challenges. FlexSHIELD is the first fully compostable product that provides polyethylene-like protection and ease of conversion at an economical price point. Packaging treated with FlexSHIELD is FDA, CFIA and EUR compliant for direct food contact. “We are pleased that our entire FlexSHIELD coating line has now achieved these important certifications,” said Jeff Stacy, Market Segment Manager, Cascades Sonoco. “These certifications demonstrate our commitment to creating more sustainable packaging solutions for our customers and are the fruit of years of research and development efforts.”

Clearly, the number one priority in the global Amazon crisis is to put out the fires in Brazil and Bolivia. But once this is done, what should we do? Will the placement of military forces for an indefinite period solve the problem? While this form of command and control action is important, FSC believes it will not be enough to end deforestation. FSC believes that part of the solution is sustainable forest management. Another important piece in the puzzle is the implementation of an integrated holistic action plan that involves the Brazilian Ministries of Environment or Agriculture and includes all sectors and levels of government and civil society in the debate.