PAFC Congo Basin submitted their regional forest certification system to PEFC for endorsement in December last year. The public consultation, which is your chance to give your feedback on this new system, will run from 1 February to 1 April. In order to provide you with additional information about this regional system, we are holding a webinar on 1 February, at 10:00 CET. The webinar is free to attend, and everyone is welcome. Our national members for Cameroon, Congo and Gabon joined forces under the name of PAFC Congo Basin to develop this regional certification system. The shared language and the similar forestry conditions in the three neighbouring countries enables PAFC Cameroon, PAFC Congo and PAFC Gabon to share one system.

Recycling of materials is considered to be an important part of a circular economy, but a new study published in Nature Sustainability questions the potential environmental benefits that come from paper recycling. Recycling paper materials may not be all it’s cracked up to be according to a study conducted by researchers at Yale University and University College London. Published in Nature Sustainability in October 2020, the study points out that the recycling of paper materials in particular could have a negative impact on the climate. click read more below for more...

According to the recently published comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study, paper-based single-use products provide significant key environmental advantages when compared to reusable tableware for in-store dining in Quick Service Restaurants (QSR). These advantages are primarily driven by the carbon emissions related to the amount of energy required to wash the tableware as well as the amount of freshwater used in the washing process in a multi-use system. A recent study conducted by Ramboll, a leading global engineering, design and consultancy company and certified by TÜV, one of the world’s leading testing service providers, compares the environmental impact of paper-based single-use packaging to that of reusable tableware in an in-store dining setting in Quick Service Restaurants in Europe. The full environmental impact was scientifically measured for both applications across multiple criteria and scenarios. Importantly, the results showed that: • For climate change, the single-use system shows very significant benefits. In fact, in the baseline scenario, the polypropylene-based multi-use system was responsible for generating 2.7 times more CO2-e emissions than the paper-based single-use system. The single main contributor to climate change impact in the multi-use baseline scenario is the electricity demand of the washing process. Overall, the use phase accounts for 83% of the total aggregated impact. • For Freshwater Consumption, there are also very significant environmental benefits to the single-use system. The multi-use system used 3.6 times the amount of freshwater in the baseline scenario.

On Thursday 11 February 2021, the IJmond Sustainable Award will be presented during the digital kick-off conference of the Upcycle Your Waste project for a circular economy. The IJmond Environment Agency grants this award to companies that consciously opts for sustainability in its business operations and / or product(s). The nominees for this year are BTAC Solutions in IJmuiden, Patina Dakdenkers in Beverwijk and Crown Van Gelder in Velsen-Noord. All three nominees show how logical, important and diverse sustainable entrepreneurship can be. This years theme is pioneering, which all nominees fit well into this category. A jury consisting of an aldermen and the winner of the last sustainability award will decide together who will receive the IJmond Sustainable Award. The winner will be announced during the conference on 11 February 2021.

Last September, PEFC Austria concluded the Wish forest campaign, run in collaboration with DIY store BAUHAUS and laminate flooring brand LOGOCLIC. The campaign saw 60,000 trees planted in Austrian forests, with active support of pupils from local primary schools. The young trees for the planting campaign were sponsored by LOGOCLIC and BAUHAUS. The companies promised to plant a tree for every five m2 of LOGOCLIC Wish Forest Edition laminate flooring sold. The final outcome for 2019 was an incredible 60,000 trees planted in the autumn.

As the climate changes, ecosystems around the world are also changing. Some say trees are getting shorter and younger, but there are ways to mitigate this. Environmental and climate changes are transforming the world’s forests. A new study published by scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) suggests that these changes are causing trees to become smaller and younger. Is this really the case and if yes, what can we do about it? Indeed, the rising temperatures are a source of stress for trees. Matti Maajärvi, Senior Specialist of Global Forest Affairs at UPM Forest, says that as the climate changes, “the frequency of negative natural phenomena – such as extreme droughts, forest fires and mass outbursts of pests – can impact the forests adversely.”

“We delivered 103.5 million seedlings, which is over a million more than our previous record. It’s great to have succeeded so well, especially considering the coronavirus pandemic. In the spring, we were concerned that we would be forced to discard seedlings due to the coronavirus, but it turns out we didn’t have to. Instead, we had a record season that will be hard to beat for a while,” says Peter Engblom, business developer at NorrPlant. Of the 103.5 million seedlings that were delivered, 63 million were pine seedlings, 33 million spruce seedlings, 7 million contorta pine seedlings and nearly 600,000 larch seedlings. “Pine dominates the forests owned by SCA. Deliveries of pine seedlings are also increasing among our external customers,” says Peter. The majority of seedlings were delivered to external customers, from Karlstad in the south to Kiruna in the north. NorrPlant also exported some seedlings to Sweden’s neighboring countries.

Our customers want to feel good about shopping at Walmart, and they count on us to deliver access to products that are safe, healthier and affordable in a way that is sustainable. For more than 15 years, we’ve been collaborating with others to drive positive impact across global supply chains. We’re on a path to becoming a more regenerative company that works to restore, renew and replenish, in addition to conserving nature. Part of meeting that goal is found in how we treat the world’s forests. Healthy forests help sustain biodiversity, support livelihoods and play an important role in combatting climate change by naturally sequestering carbon dioxide. But deforestation continues to occur at an alarming rate. According to the World Resources Institute, we lost the equivalent of a soccer field of primary rainforest every six seconds in 2019. That’s why we continue to take a holistic approach to addressing deforestation – from certification and monitoring to sustainable sourcing, advocacy and more. Walmart is focused on key commodities that, according to the World Economic Forum, drive deforestation in tropical forests: palm oil, pulp and paper, timber, beef and soy. click read more below for the rest of the story

The Appalachian Woodlands Alliance has won the 2020 Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Leadership Award. for its work to expand forest certification opportunities for small landowners. Domtar is a proud partner in the Appalachian Woodlands Alliance (AWA), joining the Rainforest Alliance and other forest products manufacturers in supporting small, private landowners in the Southeastern United States who manage healthy and productive forests. This leadership award recognizes uncommon excellence in advancing responsible forest management and forest conservation. Domtar and the AWA are proud to stand alongside landowners, retailers, manufacturers, organizations and others who promote responsible sourcing and forest certification, both of which help protect the natural resources that are vital to our industry.

Packaging leader Smurfit Kappa has launched a new company called Recycling Dual GmbH to help German manufacturers and retail businesses reduce costs and improve their sustainability efforts, in line with updated legislation. Recycling Dual offers an innovative and integrated holistic solution to track the entire life cycle of paper, cardboard and carton packaging. The unique solution highlights duplication which can be removed from the supply chain and reduce costs. For the first time Recycling Dual guarantees to close the full loop for paper-based packaging for its customers. The service provides them with a holistic solution to ensure packaging from their products is recycled through a nationwide collection system. From 2021, Recycling Dual will be the only company in the market with the ability to track the life cycle of paper, cardboard and carton packaging from production through to being recycled.

Responsible Wood, our national member for Australia, has welcomed an announcement by Woolworths, one of the country’s main supermarkets, that it will be stocking PEFC-certified paper bags. The move comes ahead of a progressive roll-out of Australian-made paper bags over the next 12 months. Woolworths paper shopping bags were first launched in June 2020 in response to customer demand for a paper carry bag option. “Whilst almost all customers are now bringing their own reusable bags, we know unplanned shops will present a challenge from time to time,” said Natalie Davis, Managing Director of Woolworths Supermarkets. “Earlier this year we introduced the option of a paper bag, which can be recycled at home, and the feedback from customers has been positive.”

The Navigator Company recently inaugurated a new biomass boiler at its Figueira daFoz industrial complex, in an overall investment totalling €55 million. This investment will allow the company to cut its fossil carbon dioxide emissions at this complex by around 150,000 to 200,000 tonnes per year, or 30% of the group’s emissions, in 2021. This investment is part of the decarbonization strategy of the company, who decided in 2019 to meet European targets early and achieve carbon neutrality at all of its industrial complexes by 2035, achieving an 86% reduction in its CO2 emissions by this date. Note that Navigator was the first Portuguese company, and one of the first worldwide, to set such an ambitious goal. Achieving this goal will require a total investment of €154 million, €55 million (around 35%) of which has already been invested to date since Navigator took on the commitment.

We are pleased to announce the release of our annual sustainability report, detailing our updated sustainability strategy including Science Based Targets, achievements, and alignment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The ‘Innovation with Purpose’ report can be viewed here and illustrates how we have made significant progress across our sustainability programme. Initiatives rolled-out over the last year include new and improved Environmental Calculator technology, our first Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) submission and various sustainable solutions delivered via our ecosystem of suppliers. Robert MacMillan, HH Global CEO, said: “I’m proud of the progress we have made over the last year through our Innovation with Purpose programme. Following our strategic acquisition of InnerWorkings, our business now purchases more materials on behalf of the world’s leading brands than ever before, and we have a responsibility to ensure our clients understand how and where we can help.”

Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), provided the following statement regarding the recent announcement by Minister Seamus O’Regan on the launch of Canada’s 2 Billion Trees initiative. “SFI and Project Learning Tree Canada (PLT Canada) are pleased to see the official launch of the 2 Billion Trees initiative today. This initiative has the potential to elevate the role that trees and sustainably managed forests play in Canada’s health, wealth, identity and heritage while also advancing nature-based solutions as part of our sustainable future.” “We are ready to collaborate and leverage our scale and network to identify forests in need of restoration, identify new places and spaces in urban forests to increase our tree canopy, and to help administer the roll out and execution of this important initiative. This effort will contribute to more resilient forests of the future and support job creation and green infrastructure while helping to address global sustainability challenges.”

Greif, Inc. announced it has been awarded an A- Leadership ranking for the third year in a row by CDP as part of their annual climate change assessment. CDP operates a global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states and regions to manage the impact they make on the environment. “Earning an A- Leadership ranking from CDP for a third year in a row continues to reinforce and recognize our ongoing efforts to minimize our environmental footprint,” said Pete Watson, Greif's President and Chief Executive Officer. “We are committed to providing value for our stakeholders by safeguarding the environment through our continued sustainability efforts.”

The Navigator Company has once again been given an “A” rating by the CDP in a world survey assessing company action on climate change, achieved by only 3% of companies evaluated throughout the entire world. Navigator has been distinguished as a world leader in fighting climate change by the CDP, a non-governmental organization which evaluates the environmental performance of companies and cities, whose analyses are used by investors in their decision-making on sustainable investing.

HH Global is delighted to announce the renewal of our EcoVadis Gold Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) status in recognition of sustainability achievements. As well as renewing EcoVadis Gold for 2020, HH Global’s overall score also increased by one point to a total of 67. This places HH Global within the top five percent of companies that are evaluated by EcoVadis globally, and strongly demonstrates a continued commitment to sustainability. “We are delighted to renew and improve our EcoVadis Gold status” stated Kevin Dunckley, HH Global Chief Sustainability and Innovation Officer. “The business is growing quickly and our improved score is testament to our global commitment to sustainability and continuous improvement strategy. We have also set ambitious Science Based Targets in 2020, and will shortly be releasing our latest Sustainability Report which will contain further details of our achievements and ambitions”

Tetra Pak has been recognised for leadership in corporate sustainability by global environmental non-profit CDP,[1] securing a place on its prestigious A List for tackling climate change, as well as acting to protect forests – two of the three environmental themes covered by CDP. Tetra Pak is the only company in the carton packaging sector to be included in the CDP leadership band for five years in a row and to score an outstanding double ‘A’ for climate and forests in 2020. Tetra Pak is part of a very small number of companies (1%) that achieved a double ‘A’ score, out of 5,800+ companies that were scored based on data submitted through CDP’s questionnaires in 2020. Through significant demonstrable action on climate and deforestation risks, the company is leading on corporate environmental ambition, action and transparency worldwide.

Mondi is the main sponsor for the Bristol Gulls, a four-woman team taking on the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. They will be rowing an Eco Boat for the 4,800km race and consuming food freeze dried in recyclable packaging provided by Mondi. *They will have a 55-day supply of mainly freeze-dried meals packed in Mondi’s award-winning BarrierPack Recyclable, a fully recyclable mono-material that supports a circular economy *The Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge begins on 12 December 2020, covering 4,800km from La Gomera in the Canary Islands to Antigua

The holidays are here! And as always, paper will play an important part in our celebrations – from shopping bags, gift boxes and decorations to greeting cards and cardboard shipping boxes. And after the holidays are over, you can give a gift that keeps on giving by recycling. The paper and paper-based packaging you recycle this holiday season extends the life of a valuable natural resource (wood fiber from trees), prevents waste from going to landfills and avoids the release of greenhouse gas emissions that occur when paper decomposes in landfills. And who knows, it might just end up as part of someone else’s holiday celebration next year! Nearly all Americans and Canadians have access to curbside or drop-off recycling programs, and both Americans and Canadians are clearly committed to recycling -not just during the holidays, but throughout the year. The U.S. recovers 66% of its paper and paperboard packaging and 92% of corrugated cardboard for recycling annually. Canada recovers nearly 70% of its paper and paper-based packaging and 85% of corrugated cardboard.

Leading global apparel company Gap Inc. has joined the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol and Textile Exchange’s 2025 Sustainable Cotton Challenge as part of its integrated sustainability strategy and to help it achieve its commitment to use only 100% sustainably-sourced cotton by 2025. Gap Inc.’s target of sourcing 100% of its cotton from more sustainable sources by 2025 is set across its collection of purpose-led lifestyle brands including Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta. The Trust Protocol will help Gap Inc. meet this goal by providing verified data on the sustainability practices used on U.S. cotton farms.

AptarGroup, Inc. has been recognized for its leadership in corporate sustainability by the global environmental non-profit CDP, securing a place on its prestigious ‘A List’ for tackling climate change. Aptar was recognized for its actions to cut emissions, mitigate climate risks and further the low-carbon economy, based on the data reported by the Company through CDP’s 2020 climate change questionnaire. Aptar is one of a small number of high-performing companies out of 5,800+ that were scored. Through significant demonstrable action on climate, Aptar is leading on corporate environmental ambition, action and transparency worldwide.

CDP, a global non-profit organisation, has recognised UPM as one of the world’s Triple A List companies for tackling climate change and taking actions to ensure sustainable forest management and water security. Only ten out of more than 5,800 companies were able to receive a Triple A recognition and UPM got it for the second year in a row. “As a forest and bio products company, receiving an A on Climate, Forest and Water is an extremely valuable recognition. In January, we signed the UN Business Ambition for 1.5°C with commitment to climate-positive forestry, ambitious CO2 emission reductions and new product innovations,” says Pirkko Harrela, EVP, UPM Stakeholder Relations.

Metsä Board, the leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and part of Metsä Group, has been recognized for leadership in corporate sustainability by global environmental non-profit CDP, securing a place on its prestigious ‘A List’ for tackling climate change, as well as acting to protect water security – two of the three environmental themes covered by CDP.  Metsä Board has been included on the CDP Climate ‘A List’ since 2016. In the CDP’s Forest programme Metsä Board scored A-. Metsä Board is shown as one of a small number of companies that achieved a double ‘A’, out of more than 5,800 businesses that were scored based on data submitted through CDP’s questionnaires in 2020. Through significant demonstrable action on climate change and water security risks, Metsä Board is leading on corporate environmental ambition, action and transparency worldwide.

BillerudKorsnäs’ contribution to the low-carbon economy and actions to cut emissions have been recognized by the global environmental non-profit CDP, when BillerudKorsnäs today secured a place on the prestigious ‘A List’ for tackling climate change. CDP’s annual environmental disclosure and scoring process is widely recognized as the gold standard of corporate environmental transparency. In 2020, more than 5,800 companies were scored, and only the few top performing companies achieved a place on the ‘A-list’. At BillerudKorsnäs we believe that combatting climate change is the most critical issue of our time, so we are very happy to receive this confirmation by CDP.

Leading global packaging and paper manufacturer Mondi has secured a place on CDP’s prestigious ‘Triple A List’ for tackling climate change as well as acting to protect forests and water security. Mondi has been recognised for leading on corporate environmental ambition, action and transparency worldwide. CDP’s annual environmental disclosure and scoring process is widely recognised as the gold standard of corporate environmental transparency. In 2020, over 515 investors with over US$106 trillion in assets and 150+ major purchasers with US$4 trillion in procurement spend requested companies to disclose data on environmental impacts, risks and opportunities through CDP’s platform. Over 9,600 responded – the highest ever. Mondi is one of only 10 companies that has achieved a triple ‘A’, out of the 5,800+ companies that were scored based on data submitted through CDP’s questionnaires in 2020.

Sappi North America, Inc., a leading producer and supplier of diversified paper, packaging products and pulp, has been awarded a platinum score in the latest EcoVadis rating, alongside the company's regional counterparts Sappi Europe and Sappi Southern Africa. EcoVadis is a leader in third-party evaluations of business sustainability performance, and its platinum medal is only awarded to those companies who score in the top 1% for sustainability practices. "We are very pleased to see improvement in all four categories," said Sandy Taft, Director of Sustainability at Sappi North America. "We are developing new strategies and processes to improve even further upon these results next year."

Currently, the public discussion on Finnish forests often boils down to everyone being concerned about our carbon sinks. However, Finnish forest owners and Finnish forestry continuously take care of our carbon sinks by investing in forest growth through efficient regeneration and good forest management. Naturally, there is also room to improve. For the climate, the most important aspect of sustainable forest use is ensuring the growth of new forests. When forests are regenerated, it is important that the new trees begin to grow rapidly. This means that choosing correct, well-bred and high quality silvicultural material is important. The majority of the forest area that is annually regenerated, around 100,000 hectares, is established by either planting or sowing. Choosing the correct forest cultivation material is an easy and long-term method for impacting the growth of the new forest and its future tree yield. click read more below for additional information

Globally accredited sustainability ratings provider EcoVadis has scored Sappi Southern Africa Platinum Medal status in its assessment of how well the company has integrated sustainability principles into its business and management system. EcoVadis is the world’s largest and most trusted provider of business sustainability ratings, creating a global network of more than 65,000 rated companies. Sappi Southern Africa scored 79 out of 100 in its assessment, affording it Platinum Medal status and placing it in the top one percent of companies assessed by EcoVadis worldwide.

Forest certification evolved from concerns about the destruction of tropical forests. Yet after more than two decades of combined efforts by PEFC and FSC, less than a tenth of the global certified forest area is tropical forest. It is time for a new boost for forest certification of tropical forests, and PEFC - together with a diverse coalition of stakeholders - is making great strides towards this goal. The loss of tropical forests was high on the agenda of the 1992 Earth Summit, but governments failed to agree on a legally binding agreement on this topic. Yet it gave raise to something potentially more important: the insight that deforestation cannot be tackled in isolation, but needs to be part of a holistic, global effort to promote sustainable forest management (SFM). As a result, the concept of “criteria and indicators for Sustainable Forest Management” became more widely accepted internationally, and eventually led to Pan-European criteria and indicators for SFM (MCPFE) and criteria for the sustainable management of tropical forests (ATO/ITTO).

There have been a number of discouraging headlines over the past few years about recycling. In 2019, China stopped accepting our recycling waste, causing a drastic increase in the amount of waste in landfills. There’s also growing doubt about the paper and plastic thrown into your curbside recycling bins, raising questions on whether or not it will ultimately be processed for reuse. The good news is, it’s not challenging to ensure your recycled packaging makes it back into the circular economy. Here are four easy steps to take: *Check With Your Local Government *Know If Recyclables Can Be Picked Up Curbside *Properly Clean Waste Before Putting It in the Bin *Research Store and Manufacturer Recycling Policies

Efforts to reduce water use, use energy efficiently and streamline resources used to ship products across the U.S. earned employees and GP facilities a variety of awards from the EPA this fall. At the beginning of November, Georgia-Pacific facilities received several awards and certifications, including the ENERGY STAR® Top Project for 2020, an ENERGY STAR® Certification and the SmartWay Excellence Award. The Leaf River cellulose mill in New Augusta, Mississippi, became the first U.S. pulp mill to earn the EPA’s ENERGY STAR certification, signifying that the manufacturing facility performed in the top 25 percent of similar facilities nationwide for energy efficiency this year.

As a way of thinking, sustainability is well suited to forestry, since forests have traditionally been seen as an asset that will benefit several generations. From a forest owner’s point of view, the most essential factor in climate change mitigation is ensuring that forests remain viable. “Making sure that forests are in a fit state to grow is key. When trees fall, the carbon that has been stored in them is released,” says Jyrki Kangas, Professor of Forest Bioeconomy at the University of Eastern Finland. The trees and soil in forests absorb carbon dioxide and act as carbon reservoirs. In principle, extending forest turnover times improves the carbon balance, but trees cannot be left to grow infinitely. The optimal time for harvesting, considering both forest productivity and the climate, is before tree growth begins to slow down and trees become more susceptible to damage. From the point of view of carbon binding, it is essential that forests produce wood as efficiently as possible. The faster a forest grows after a regeneration felling, the faster it will begin to store carbon.

Crown Holdings, Inc. is now operating all 14 of its beverage can plants in the U.S. and Canada on renewable energy. It is the first metal packaging manufacturer to achieve this milestone, which is the result of a 15-year wind power Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA) with Longroad Energy. With the VPPA in effect and all of Crown's manufacturing facilities in the U.K. already completing a similar transition, 27.5% of the Company's global operations are now using renewable electricity. This accelerated usage of alternative power sources serves as a major step in Crown's plan to employ 60% renewable electricity by 2030, 90% by 2040 and 100% by 2050—targets established in Crown's Twentyby30 initiative, a comprehensive sustainability program that addresses climate issues among other areas of urgent global concern. The action also supports Crown's Twentyby30 goal to decrease Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within its global operations, targeting a 50% combined reduction in absolute Scope 1 (fuel) and Scope 2 (electricity) emissions. The transition reflects Crown's commitment to the RE100, which is led by The Climate Group and CDP and focuses on accelerating the transition to zero carbon grids at global scale.

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is seeking a consultancy to develop research that quantifies the additional forest carbon impact of FSC-certified forest management in North America. This work has the potential to be transformational among the organizations that rely on FSC certification as an important tool to conserve forests, even as they use forest products. This includes many of the world’s largest companies and most respected brands, along with the best-known environmental organizations. A small staff team from the FSC Canada and FSC US national offices will work with the consultancy throughout the project. In addition, FSC has convened an advisory body of experts and representatives of end-user stakeholders – including WWF, The Nature Conservancy, Verra, Ecotrust, REI, IKEA and DPR Construction – to provide input into the project.

More than 330 virtual attendees from across the U.S. and Canada joined the Sustainable Forestry Initiative’s E-Summit, Growing Solutions, to share ideas about how sustainably managed forests, and products sourced from those forests, are great tools to achieve shared sustainability goals. Session 1: Responding to Consumers and Providing Better Choices for the Planet Session 2: Standards Revision and the Impact of Label Statements Session 3: Conservation Impact—Collaborating on Climate Change, Biodiversity, and Water Quality Session 4: How Forest Sector Professionals Can Support Forest Literacy for Youth Session 5: Building Bridges for the Next Generation of Forest and Conservation Leaders

Below is a statement from FPAC President and CEO, Derek Nighbor: “Canada’s forest sector is positioned to be one of the leaders in our move to a low-carbon economy. We have already reduced GHG emissions by over 66% since the early 1990’s and were the first major industry group in the country to put forward a plan to help achieve the federal government’s Paris Agreement targets. Canada has an advantage that is the envy of most countries on the planet. Our forests and the sustainably sourced products they provide will be among the most powerful tools in Canada’s toolbox. Our managed forests and the wood products from them already constitute a carbon sink in Canada, and we can continue to reduce emissions and store more carbon for longer in the coming years. Forests are complex ecosystems and they need to be monitored and taken care of – even more so in a dynamic and changing environment."

UPM has joined the Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI) which was founded in September 2020 by twelve leading companies in the chemical industry. The aim of the initiative is to support and speed up the transition from fossil carbon to renewable carbon for all organic chemicals and materials. “This is about a fundamental change in the chemical industry. Just as the energy industry is converting to renewable sources, renewable carbon will become the new foundation of chemical and material industries in the future. We want to accelerate the change,” says Michael Carus, CEO of nova-Institute in Germany and the head of the Renewable Carbon Initiative. The Renewable Carbon Initiative addresses the core problem of climate change, which is largely related to extracting and using additional fossil carbon from the ground.

Through Friday, December 18th, the draft revised National Forest Stewardship Standard is open for public comment. Following below are the top-10 reasons to review the draft and submit your comments: 1) Influence the management of more than 35 million acres of forest currently certified to FSC standards in the US, with millions of additional acres considering certification. 2) Add your perspective to the diverse coalition of voices represented by FSC. 3) Help FSC make sure the new forest stewardship standard is both rigorous and practical. 4) Stand up for science as it applies to forest management. 5) Ensure FSC certification remains a good proxy for climate-smart forestry and wood products in the construction marketplace. click read more below for the remaining 5.

From FSC certification of our Quilted Northern Ultra Soft and Strong bath tissue to the management of 75,000 acres of certified forestland and our cutting edge forest mapping, we are excited to be recognized by both SCS Global Services and FSC-US this year for our long-term efforts to manage natural resources. We all agree that certification programs help balance the environmental, social and economic benefits of forestlands. For years, SCS Global Services has helped GP validate certification requirements through audits and sustainability verifications. As an external partner, SCS had detailed insight into our work, sometimes behind the scenes, and nominated us for this award.

Global label stock manufacturer UPM Raflatac has worked hard to quantify and build upon its sustainable manufacturing processes through its innovative Biofore Site™ program, which is now celebrating its third year. Implemented at the company’s 10 factories worldwide, the program has resulted in many improvements that help further cement UPM Raflatac’s position as it is leading in sustainable labeling. The Biofore Site concept includes a scorecard with approximately 40 performance measures mapped to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which align with parent company UPM’s 2030 responsibility targets. The scorecard provides flexibility for UPM Raflatac’s factory teams to develop site-specific roadmaps for achieving their Biofore Site goals. Filled out annually by each factory, the scorecards touch on standard sustainability measures like waste generation, energy consumption, and safety performance, and some not-so-conventional measures, like supplier sustainability performance, development opportunities for employees, engagement in community activities, and measures of diversity.

Mactac® announces its role as a leading member in the newly founded CELAB (Circular Economy for Labels) global consortium, which promotes recycling in the self-adhesive label industry. CELAB is an industry initiative, comprised of more than 30 companies in the self-adhesive label industry, to create greater circularity for industry products by enhancing and promoting matrix and release liner recycling around the world. “This coalition is designed to create a powerful, positive impact on environmental sustainability in the self-adhesive label industry on a global level,” says Clunie. “Reaching across the entire value chain, we will provide education, encourage adoption of best practices and work to develop cost-effective solutions that collectively advance label recycling for all, including label printers and end-users.”

To support the clean water mission, NOVA Chemicals is donating film resins to Pregis for the production of its Inspyrebrand line of colorful hybrid-cushioning protective packaging. A portion of the proceeds from Inspyre packaging sales are donated to the Uzima Clean Water Mission. “The resins provided by NOVA Chemicals will enable to Pregis to provide greater financial support to Uzima. The partnership with NOVA Chemicals enables Pregis to offer packaging engineers and brand owners the best of both worlds. NOVA Chemicals’ resins enable us to exceed customer expectations for packaging performance while giving all of us an opportunity to serve a worthy and genuinely life-saving cause,” said Kevin Baudhuin, president and chief executive officer, Pregis. The Inspyre brand includes low-density polyethylene hybrid cushioning (HC) packaging film, stocked in water blue and available in other colors. In addition to helping brand owners enhance their unboxing experience, companies support charitable efforts through their protective packaging material choice.

Leading global producer of sustainable fiber and bio-based products, Asia Pacific Resources International Limited (APRIL), has announced a slate of progressive targets to 2030 that will have a positive impact on climate, nature and people while transforming its business. Supporting the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in Indonesia, APRIL2030 targets a drastic reduction of carbon emissions to achieve net zero emissions from land use and a 25% cut in product carbon emissions. The company also commits to net zero loss of protected areas and measurable gains in biodiversity and ecosystem benefits in the conservation and restoration areas under its active management.

Every year, we award our PEFC members that have achieved the biggest increases in PEFC-certified forest area and PEFC chain of custody certificates. In 2020, the awards for highest growth in certified hectares all went to Asia! The Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC) took gold, thanks to an increase of over 950,000 hectares, following the certification of 10 forest management units in Johor, Sabah and Sarawak. This is an increase of over 20%, taking the PEFC-certified forest area in Malaysia to over 5.2 million hectares. Second place went to the Network for Certification and Conservation of Forests (NCCF), our member for India. This award was particularly special, as their increase of 450,000 hectares represented the first PEFC-certified forest area in the country – this time last year, there were no certified hectares. In bronze position was the Korea Forest Certificate Council (KFCC), who also saw an extremely impressive increase, growing their certified forest area by more than 150%, up to 706,000 hectares. The Republic of Korea achieved their first PEFC-certified forest area in 2019.

UPM has been listed as the forest and paper industry leader in the Dow Jones European and World Sustainability Indices (DJSI) for 2020-2021. “Population growth, climate change and the scarcity of natural resources call for companies to take proactive actions. Finding alternatives to fossil materials and meeting global challenges is at the core of UPM's Biofore strategy,” says Sami Lundgren, VP, UPM Responsibility. “In 2020, we have taken significant steps to advance our responsibility agenda. In January, we became one of the world’s first forest industry companies that committed to the UN’s Business Ambition for 1.5°C and to science-based measures to mitigate global warming. Furthermore, we have established a Green Finance Framework and integrated our responsibility targets of sustainable forest management, emission reductions and innovative bioeconomy products into the company's long-term financing,” Sami Lundgren continues.

DS Smith in Gent already conducted a detailed review to the gas, water and electricity consumption in 2010. We concluded then that “Of all the sites, we were in the tail of the pack.", says Luc Arens, technical project coordinator at DS Smith. After that analysis, the company took a number of measures, such as placing high-efficiency boilers and installing LED lamps in the production halls. Today, in order to reduce total CO2 emissions by 30%, DS Smith in Gent aim to go a step ahead and has sought for a partner to further optimize the production and reduce the emissions of these processes. In the summer of 2019, an energy coaching program was set up together with the city of Ghent. This process began with a review of the processes used and provided an overview of the possible areas of improvement. By professionally measuring energy consumption at different stages in the processes, more targeted actions could be taken. In this way, the stealth consumption was addressed and the waste water was also recently collected by a specialized company.

An integrated sustainability work and an ambition to constantly meet customers' sustainability requirements are reasons why BillerudKorsnäs maintains its leading position for the third year in a row, according to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index – a globally recognized sustainability ranking for investors. The results from this year's ranking show that BillerudKorsnäs is one of the ten percent most sustainable companies and the company with the highest score in the Containers & Packaging category. S&P Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) is a comprehensive annual evaluation of companies’ sustainability practices and performance with a coverage of over 7,300 companies representing approximately 95 percent of market capitalization. The top ten percent are included in the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index.

48 environmental, conservation and forest business leaders announced an agreement of principles on the important role sustainably managed forests and forest products can play in mitigating climate change. Forests in the U.S. offset 15% of the country’s industrial carbon emissions. Carbon sequestration in sustainably managed private forest lands and carbon storage in forest products can provide a natural solution to climate change while also providing a wide variety of additional benefits like clean air and water, wildlife habitat, and good paying jobs. The principles are signed by the CEOs of American Forests, American Forest Foundation, Environmental Defense Fund, National Alliance of Forest Owners, The Nature Conservancy, and the CEOs of 43 forestry businesses representing over 46 million acres of working forests across the United States.

The 25th PEFC General Assembly, the first one to ever be held virtually, has welcomed three new members. The General Assembly, our highest decision making body, voted Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina and UPM Kymmene Corporation into the alliance. “We look forward to joining PEFC to further strengthen our role in promoting sustainable forest management globally,” said Inka Musta, Senior Manager, Global Forest Affairs at UPM, our new international stakeholder member. The Association of Private Forest Owners “Naša Šuma” and the Association for Sustainable Forest Management, Forest Products and Services Certification (SOYDER) are the new national members for Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Turkey, respectively. They are our 54th and 55th national members!

Kotkamills, a manufacturer of fully recyclable food service board, has signed a collaboration agreement with the organisers of the alpine skiing event World Cup Levi. World Cup Levi kicks off the FIS World Cup season with the women’s slalom event on 21 – 22 November. Food and beverages at World Cup Levi will be served in cups and trays made from Kotkamills’ eco-friendly, fully recyclable board. “Sustainability is very important to both collaboration parties, and we are working hard to advance it. We are pleased that the Levi event organisers have wanted to replace the traditional products with new, eco-friendly alternatives,” says Markku Hämäläinen, CEO of Kotkamills.

The global food packaging industry is setting ambitious targets to make its operations more sustainable, working on designing for circularity across systems and products. However, lasting solutions need cooperation between different contributors. “While we have seen a significant leap forward in terms of our industry-wide commitment to sustainability we know that to deliver groundbreaking solutions we have to work across the industry and that no single organization holds all the answers”, says Thomasine Kamerling, Executive Vice President, Sustainability and Communications at Huhtamaki. “Our Circularity report helps to set out on what is needed today to address some of the biggest challenges we face in the creation of true and lasting sustainability, together. We are delighted that so many organizations have taken the opportunity to share their thoughts on what is needed next by contributing directly to the report.

Global pressure sensitive label material supplier UPM Raflatac is pleased to announce it has made great progress toward a more circular economy for plastics and a future beyond fossils. This progress is detailed in the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment 2020 Progress Report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the UN Environment Programme. UPM Raflatac is the only pressure sensitive labeling company to have announced targets for reducing unnecessary plastic packaging as a signatory of the Global Commitment. As highlighted in the report, UPM Raflatac has continued to develop new sustainable label solutions that focus on more resource-efficient materials, including certified papers, recycled content, solvent-free adhesives, and wash-off and fossil-free solutions. One major step in this direction was the debut of UPM Raflatac Forest Film™ in 2019, the industry's first commercially available polypropylene and polyethylene plastic labeling material derived from wood-based sources.

Sun Chemical has signed up to the Digital Watermarks Initiative HolyGrail 2.0, facilitated by AIM, the European Brands Association. In doing so, Sun Chemical is joining forces with over 85 companies and organisations to participate in a pilot project with the goal of proving the viability of digital watermarking technologies to enable better sorting and higher quality recycling rates for packaging in the EU, in order to drive a truly circular economy. The initiative follows on from HolyGrail 1.0, a project conducted as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy programme, which brought together different stakeholders from the packaging value chain between 2016 and 2019. Having investigated different innovations to improve post-consumer recycling, digital watermarks were found to be the most promising technology.

Mondi has joined the newly created consortium CELAB (Circular Economy for Labels). This industry initiative was founded by companies in the self-adhesive label industry to create greater circularity for its products by enhancing and promoting matrix and release liner recycling around the world. In joining CELAB, Mondi and other leading companies from the self-adhesive label industry will facilitate collaboration at a global level, foster regional initiatives, and encourage the universal adoption of industry best practices.

Supermarkets in New Jersey will no longer be able to give paper bags to customers starting in mid-2022. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has signed a law prohibiting N.J. retailers and other businesses from handing out single-use paper and plastic bags, single-use plastic carryout bags and polystyrene foam containers. The law, which is being called one of the toughest of its kind in the country, goes into effect in May 2022. The bans apply to a variety of businesses, including restaurants, convenience stores, food trucks, movie theaters and grocery stores that are 2,500 sq. ft. or larger. The ban also does not apply to reusable carryout bags, defined in the bill as those made out of polypropylene, or nylon, cloth, hemp and other washable fabrics.

Berry Global Group, Inc. takes pride in announcing that its team members recently joined together in a three-week global campaign to clear litter from local communities around the world. The Company’s team members tracked their progress through the Litterati app, where they recorded over 400,000 pieces of litter. Berry’s campaign was held in conjunction with the Alliance to End Plastic Waste and in support of the ALL_TOGETHER GLOBAL CLEANUP. “Berry was proud to take part in this very worthwhile initiative. Not only is this program in direct support of our Impact 2025 Sustainability Strategy, but it also served as a catalyst for raising awareness of properly disposing of waste,” said Tom Salmon, Berry’s Chairman and CEO. “I extend sincere appreciation to our team members around the globe for their ongoing dedication to volunteerism and helping to further beautify their local communities.”

Kimberly-Clark announced that it has earned a 2020 SmartWay® Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for leadership in environmentally responsible shipping. The award recognizes companies for using a range of fuel-saving strategies in their shipping and freight delivery services that reduce transportation emissions and make freight delivery more sustainable. "We are proud to receive an eighth consecutive SmartWay Excellence Award for our efforts to minimize the carbon footprint of our transportation network," said Scott DeGroot, Vice President of Global Distribution and Planning at Kimberly-Clark. "We will continue to work with our suppliers to find innovative ways to increase operating efficiency, lower greenhouse gas emissions across our value chain, and minimize our impact on the planet. This aligns with our ambition to improve the lives and well-being of 1 billion people in underserved communities around the world with the smallest environmental footprint by 2030."

Kotkamills will continue as the main partner of the KooKoo ice hockey team also in the next league season. The partners have agreed to exercise the agreement’s option year for 2021–2022. KooKoo is pursuing a completely plastic-free game event, and the agreement means a big step closer to realising that goal. One of the big social responsibility targets of the collaboration that started between KooKoo and Kotkamills in 2019 is to make the Finnish ice hockey elite league, Liiga, games played at Lumon Arena plastic-free. “When we started the partnership with Kotkamills, our ambitious goal was to be the first sports club to develop our operations so that one day we can have a completely plastic-free game event and together show our strength in building social responsibility,” says KooKoo’s Managing Director Sakari Välimaa.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) President and CEO Heidi Brock issued the following statement regarding New Jersey’s Paper Bag Ban (NJ Senate Bill 864 / Assembly Bill 1978): “The American Forest & Paper Association opposes the action taken today by Governor Phil Murphy, signing into law a statewide ban on paper bags. This action undermines an environmentally responsible option for consumers. New Jersey is now the only state in the nation to ban paper bags, which are made from a renewable resource and are recyclable, reusable and compostable, providing a safe packaging option to protect purchases from damage and contamination. With the stroke of a pen, Governor Murphy sent an alarming message in devaluing family-wage manufacturing jobs, which are often union labor. This is an unfortunate message to send to the thousands of people working in direct and indirect jobs supported by the paper and wood products industry in the Garden State.”

Ahlstrom-Munksjö has joined CELAB (Circular Economy for Labels), a global coalition recently created to promote the development of circular economy for self-adhesive label materials. The purpose of CELAB is to create greater recyclability for the products in the self-adhesive label industry by enhancing and promoting options for recycling their waste streams around the world. There are two main process stages in the value chain of label materials which generate waste streams. The first stream is generated from the unused surrounding area of the self-adhesive face stock material after cutting the labels; this is also known as “matrix waste”. The second stream arises from the liner from which the label is peeled away during dispensing. Turning these waste streams into resources offers important sustainability improvements.

International technology Group ANDRITZ has opened a new, state-of-the-art test and research center for the recycling industry in St. Michael, Upper Styria, Austria. The new ANDRITZ Recycling Technology Center – the ART-Center– has been equipped with innovative shredder technology from the ANDRITZ ADuro product line that was presented recently, and it enables customers to conduct recycling tests under real plant conditions with industrial-scale equipment. The ADuro shredders can be used for primary and for secondary shredding as well as for fine granulation and dismantling of composite materials. As a result, tests are possible with very different waste streams and complete recycling processes can be replicated.

Global pressure sensitive label manufacturer UPM Raflatac has worked hard to embrace the circular economy and sought a way to measure performance. The company tested the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Circulytics tool and received an overall score of B, indicating that UPM Raflatac has made great strides in enabling circularity, but still has work to do in measuring output as a supplier in the packaging value chain. Circulytics is a tool that allows organizations to assess how circular they currently are via a broad set of metrics which deliver a company-level score. This score, alongside insights and analysis from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, helps businesses understand the extent of their success in adopting circular economy business opportunities. It provides a comprehensive picture of a company's circular economy performance — going beyond product and material flows — and highlights the most important development areas to concentrate on.

• Mars, working with SABIC and Huhtamaki, will include food-grade recycled plastic in packaging of pet food brands in 2021 • The company has plans to expand to other brands in the next year • This important step helps accelerate Mars’ progress towards achieving 30% recycled content and 25% less virgin plastic by 2025 • Chief Sustainability and Procurement Officer Barry Parkin describes milestone as “encouraging the development of recycling systems in support of a circular economy, where no packaging becomes waste”

When paper was invented by the Chinese more than 2,000 years ago, merchants quickly became an integral part of its history, taking paper making around the world and helping to develop its many variations and uses. Today’s merchants remain a vital part of the paper chain, linking paper to people and delivering value to those they serve in more ways than ever before. In Values a Merchant Provides, the National Paper Trade Association (NPTA), a long-time member and enthusiastic supporter of Two Sides, spells out important ways merchants add value to the paper chain. These include not only critical operational values such as managing efficient supply chains, developing strong relationships with mills, sharing best practices and fostering creativity, but also efforts that speak to the very foundation of the industry, namely, proactively telling the great sustainability story of print, paper and paper-based packaging. Aligned with these efforts, the paper merchant community supports a variety of organizations that promote fiber-based sustainability options. These include Two Sides, which currently has 29 merchant companies as members.

The report describes Sun Chemical’s emphasis on sustainability in the way it develops, manufactures and distributes its products while also showing how it works with customers and suppliers to improve their sustainability goals. The 2019 report shares key research and development highlights and Sun Chemical’s contributions to a more sustainable future, such as: *a long-term strategic target to reduce manufacturing CO₂ levels by at least 30% by 2030 *waste reduction programs focused on improving the utilization of incoming materials, promoting recycling and optimizing the end of life of a product or material *a silver corporate social responsibility rating by EcoVadis, a 3rd party organization that measures a variety of categories, including environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement *partnerships with various industry associations and consortia focused on large-scale sustainability objectives *products that are developed with bio-renewable raw materials *solutions designed to improve PET bottle recycling and composting

Engaging young people on the benefits of circular living and the circular economy is a key part of our ‘Now & Next’ Sustainability Strategy. As is supporting the local communities around our offices and paper mills. That’s why we have sponsored the launch of a new children’s book by the charity ‘Litter Angels’. Our sites across Europe do so much work to engage with our local communities. In a typical year we open our doors to school educational trips, our employees volunteer to teach the circular economy in classrooms, we organise community litter picks, and much more. As the second-largest recovered fibre-based paper operation in Europe, and one of the area’s largest employers, our Kemsley Paper Mill also supports a number of local and charitable initiatives, including Sheerness-based charity Litter Angels. Founded in 2008, Litter Angels aims to make the local environment a cleaner, greener place to live. Its main objective is to encourage young people to understand about the anti-social nature of litter and the damage it does to our environment. So we were delighted to provide a grant of £5,795 from the DS Smith Charitable Foundation to fund the charity’s second book which encourages primary school-aged children not to drop litter.

More than 30,000 gallons of pulping chemicals from the ND Paper mill in Old Town leaked into the Penobscot River earlier this month, violating state and federal laws, according to the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The mill suspended production after discovering that chemicals were spilling into the river through a ruptured underground sewer line and a failed floor drain on Oct. 7. It appears the spill happened periodically over a six-day span, said Brian Kavanah, director of the state agency’s bureau of water quality. The mill reported the leak to the Department of Environmental Protection, which helped with the spill cleanup and repairs to the infrastructure the following day.

UPM and the Guides and Scouts of Finland have initiated a cooperation in order to increase the dialogue and understanding between young people, companies and policy makers especially on topics concerning climate change and responsibility. UPM finds it important to understand the expectations of its stakeholders and to constantly develop its operations increasingly sustainable. "The concern about climate change is growing, especially amongst young people, which is why we want to contribute to the constructive discussions about solutions and alternatives. This long-term collaboration aims to organise joint events and to build a dialogue between young people, experts and policy makers in different ways", says Saara Tahvanainen, Vice President, Stakeholder Relations at UPM Biorefining.

We are pleased to present the Two Sides Q3 Campaign Update 2020. Never has there been such widespread attention of the environmental credentials of the products and materials we use. A seismic shift is happening in both public and business attitudes towards sustainability. More people than ever appreciate that paper can be an environmentally sound choice for reading materials, communications, and packaging solutions. But, there is still a significant underestimation of just how sustainable paper and paper-based packaging is. It’s making our work at Two Sides more important than ever. Especially when we speak to consumers via our Love Paper campaign. The awareness of the Love Paper campaign is growing. We are continually seeing more visitors to our website (lovepaper.org). This year to date, we have had 15,000 website visitors, 30,000 website page views and gained over 2,500 social media followers.

Mondi’s Sustainable Development report 2019 is named in the ‘Top Performer’ category, honouring the top ten overall reports, from an annual review of the sustainable development reporting of leading global companies by WBCSD. "Setting ambitious targets and being transparent on how we report on our progress and performance are two compelling steps companies can take to help create a sustainable future. At Mondi, sustainability is intrinsic to how we do our business, so we are delighted that our efforts to produce exceptional reporting have been recognised once again." Gladys Naylor, Group Head of Sustainable Development

Ford Motor Co. is establishing the Bronco Wild Fund with the goal of helping off-road enthusiasts enjoy the wilderness responsibly through preservation, education and access programs. The efforts will be funded by a portion of the proceeds from every Bronco sold. Bronco brand’s endowment is targeted to raise up to $5 million annually for reforestation, trail management, outdoor adventure and scholarship programs through nonprofits dedicated to the preservation of the outdoors. The initial commitment also includes planting 1 million new trees by the end of 2021. The automaker has created a dedicated website for the effort.

In a new sustainability report, Pactiv Evergreen has announced a new goal that by 2030, 100% of its products will be made with recycled, recyclable or renewable materials. “Consumers and brands are increasingly looking for sustainable packaging solutions. Pactiv Evergreen is committed to meeting those market demands,” said John McGrath, the company’s CEO. “We are nearly two-thirds of the way towards our goal based on 2019 net revenues, and in the next decade, we will work to achieve that 100% goal.” The report further outlines a comprehensive sustainability strategy, which includes a new vision, mission and pillars that ground the company’s current and future initiatives.

Heinzel Group’s operations are characterized by saving resources, environmental protection, energy efficiency and use of renewable sources of energy. Besides the own power generation for pulp and paper production and the green energy obtained from hydropower, the roofs of Laakirchen Papier AG and Zellstoff Pöls AG are now used for the generation of renewable energy through photovoltaic systems. In cooperation with Heinzel Energy, over 9,000 solar modules are installed on around 15,000 m² of roof area which generate more than 3 GWh of green energy per year. Up to 800 tons of CO2 can be saved with both photovoltaic systems and the electricity produced will supply more than 850 households.

The impact-focused startup accelerator, Food System 6 (FS6), is today announcing the eight early-stage companies from around the world selected to participate in their new Circular Economy program, launched in partnership with global sustainable packaging solutions leader Huhtamaki. The purpose of the Huhtamaki Circular Economy Start-up Program by Food System 6 is to accelerate the development of young and promising companies working to deliver innovative sustainable solutions in areas such as waste management, sustainable packaging alternatives, new materials innovation, and regenerative production models. Through the partnership with Huhtamaki, FS6 is committing critical mentorship, advising and networking resources to provide direct support and help the selected participants build their efforts to scale. The eight cohort members were selected for their unique and timely innovations across the impact areas of: circularity, healthy people, vibrant farms, sustainable ecosystems, and justice & fairness.

HH Global has joined Aim Progress, a forum of leading Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) manufacturers and suppliers, assembled to enable and promote responsible sourcing practices and sustainable supply chains. Through Aim Progress, HH Global will collaborate with other members by sharing sustainable sourcing initiatives, raising the profile and importance of responsible sourcing, and proactively managing risk in the supply chain.

The Wall Street Journal recently issued its inaugural list of the 100 most sustainably managed companies in the world. Crown is one of only two companies in the containers and packaging industry—and the only metal packaging company—named on the list and is ranked as the top U.S. company for environmental issues management, scoring “highly for its management of water, waste and air quality.” As a Company that has been guided by the principles of sustainability since it was founded, we are incredibly proud to be recognized as a top global performer. We take our role of being a responsible employer, partner and corporate citizen seriously and are committed to doing our part to maximize our impact while reducing our footprint.

On October 5th, FSC US opened a 75-day public consultation for the first draft of a revised FSC US National Forest Stewardship Standard. Due in large part to the quality and rigor of our forest management standards, FSC is widely recognized as the world’s most trusted certification system. Draft 1 of the revised Standard offers further refinement of the respected existing standard for the United States, aligning it with the FSC Principles and Criteria Version 5 and the International Generic Indicators. Our goal is to deliver a standard that is both best-in-class and achievable by streamlining the existing standard and addressing a number of priority issues, identified below. To help achieve this goal, we will need clear, actionable input from an informed and diverse set of stakeholders during this consultation.

Climate change is the challenge of our time, requiring action across all sectors of society. While there are many emerging technologies, today there is only one proven, economical way to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere at a global scale: Forests. While much of the emphasis to date has been on reforestation and afforestation, increasingly leaders are looking to responsibly managed forests as an opportunity to sequester additional biogenic carbon. As the world’s most trusted forest certification – impacting more than 500 million acres – the Forest Stewardship Council represents the gold standard for responsible forest management. As a result, many stakeholders – including leading brands, supply chain companies, architects, builders, and developers – are asking FSC about the carbon impacts of FSC-certified forest management.

Procter & Gamble shareholders overwhelmingly approved a proposal urging the company to issue a report that increases its efforts to eliminate deforestation, with the implication that more needs to be done. The vote was pegged a major victory for environmentalists concerned about P&G’s policies. Because of the company’s size and stature worldwide, it could send a loud statement to other consumer packaged goods manufacturers that paying attention to environmental issues is becoming a real factor with the public and Wall Street. The shareholder proposal, sponsored by the environmentally sensitive Green Century Equity Fund, passed Tuesday with over two-thirds of investors’ votes -- -and over the recommendation to vote against it from P&G’s board.

Amcor is proud to be joining a new call for a UN treaty on plastic waste, following a recent report from Boston Consulting Group, World Wildlife Foundation and Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Amcor has embraced a leadership role in the packaging industry, to drive fast and tangible progress towards responsible packaging. Our company’s contribution is most visible through 1) our innovation - such as our recent, world first recyclable retort pet food pouch – 2) collaborating for better policy and 3) informing consumers about how their recycling practices make a huge difference in keeping waste out of the environment. That progress at industry level must continue and gather even more pace. But it must also be matched by a serious, concerted effort by governments to invest in the necessary infrastructure needed to manage waste and increase recycling – of all of types of waste.

With various activities throughout Europe, the European Paper Bag Day will take place for the third time on 18 October. The annual action day raises awareness of paper carrier bags as a sustainable and efficient packaging option that helps consumers to avoid littering and minimise negative impacts on the environment. This year’s edition will centre around the reusability of paper bags. For this occasion, initiators “The Paper Bag”, Europe’s leading kraft paper manufacturers and paper bag producers, have also launched a video series in which a paper bag’s reusability is tested and demonstrated in different everyday situations. Most consumers are increasingly concerned about the environment. This is also reflected in their consumption behaviour. By choosing environmentally friendly products, they try to reduce their personal carbon footprint.

Metsä Board, the leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and part of Metsä Group, is delighted to announce that two of its folding boxboards, MetsäBoard Natural FBB and MetsäBoard Pro FBB OBAfree, as well as two food service grades, MetsäBoard Natural FSB Cup and MetsäBoard Pro FSB Cup, have now received home compostability certificates complying with NF T 51-800 standard. Metsä Board’s eco-barrier paperboard MetsäBoard Prime FBB EB already holds the same certificate. “In order to enhance a circular economy our main target is that our paperboards are recycled after use. But recycling is not always possible – the paperboard may be contaminated due to its contents and therefore cannot be recycled. In such a situation compostability is the next best alternative,” says Helena Moring-Vepsäläinen, Product Safety Manager at Metsä Board.

Global sustainable food packaging leader Huhtamaki is donating €600,000 to fund a project that aims to stop the flow of plastic into the Indian Ocean from the Mithi River in Mumbai, India. The project is one of three initiatives that Huhtamaki has funded as part of its 100-year anniversary to address global sustainability challenges and build and learn from circular economy initiatives globally. The Mithi River project is run by a global partnership between the United Nations Technology Innovation Labs UNTIL, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, RiverRecycle and Earth5R. Each partner has a unique role in the project which seeks to use emerging technologies to collect plastic waste from the river and raises awareness on effective waste management in order to drive systemic change locally. The project is also focused on developing ways to valorize waste, e.g. by turning it into valuable fuels, chemicals, bio energy and bio fertilizers.

Join us at the virtual Consumer Goods Forum Sustainable Retail Summit (CGF SRS) later this month as we take a deep dive into the science behind forests and how they contribute to climate change mitigation through sequestration, storage and substitution. Sustainably managed forests are the most significant nature-based solution for action on climate change and carbon emissions. But how can global manufacturers and retailers play a meaningful role? Join us and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) as we discuss this with two leading forest science experts at our CGF Special Session on 15 October. Together, we’ll discover how sustainable procurement policies that fully leverage forest certification support global action on climate and other key sustainability action targets.

WWF Russia and UPM have today released The Guidelines on Sustainable Forest Management for Wood Suppliers in Russia. This cooperation aims to help wood suppliers in adopting ecologically, socially and economically sustainable practices in wood supply and forestry. The guidelines bring together the requirements set out in both Russian legislation and international voluntary forest certification schemes. They offer practical instructions and provide examples of best practices in safeguarding biodiversity, mitigating environmental impact and encouraging work safety and interaction with local communities and other stakeholders.

Norwich City and Kotkamills are delighted to announce their sustainability partnership, the first ever in the club’s history. The multi-year partnership will see Kotkamills work with the club to reduce the amount of plastic waste that is disposed of as a by-product of food and drink at Carrow Road football stadium and the Lotus Training Centre. The partnership is a part of the measures aimed at achieving the club’s wider sustainability goals. Once fans are allowed back to the stadium, they will see the revolutionarily easily recyclable paperboard to have replaced plastic cups and food boxes. As a result, the changes already implemented will result in over 100,000 items switch to plastic-free over the next three years with a view of continuously implementing more sustainable measure over this time.

Across all environmental issues related to the manufacture of paper-based products in North America, the harvesting of trees for wood fiber is arguably the most familiar, yet also the most misunderstood. Decades of misguided marketing messages that suggest using less paper protects forests along with deliberate anti-paper campaigns by environmental groups that twist scientific facts to suit their own agendas have left many feeling guilty for using products that are inherently sustainable. They are made from a renewable resource, are recyclable and are among the most recycled products in the world, and are manufactured using a high level of renewable energy – all key elements in a circular economy. In the U.S., total forest area increased by 18 million acres between 1990 and 2020, which averages out to the equivalent of around 1,200 NFL football fields every day. Canada’s total forest area remained relatively stable over the 30-year assessment period at approximately 857 million acres. Approximately 59% of forestlands in North America has long-term forest management plans.

DS Smith has joined other leading businesses in signing up for Business for Nature’s Call for Action to reverse the loss of biodiversity, urging government to enact effective change for the environment. Businesses, societies and economies all rely on nature and its resources, however, over half of the world’s total GDP ($44 trillion) is moderately or highly exposed to risks from biodiversity loss. For industries like corrugated packaging, which uses wood and water, this represents an insurmountable loss of income, livelihoods and essential materials. DS Smith has always had a strong focus on sustainability, putting it at the heart of everything it does and making biodiversity a particular priority.

University of Oulu and Metsä Group have entered into a partnership agreement in which research and educational cooperation will be deepened in order to develop sustainable forest industry. The aim is to increase interaction and work life contacts between students and the company. The co-operation includes, for example, visiting lectures, company visits, thesis work and internships. The themes of the joint research projects are the utilization of inorganic production sidestreams from the forest industry, for example as bioproducts, and the development of autonomous solutions and automated logistics in the wood, pulp, paperboard and sawmill industries. Experiments and solutions for the introduction of the technology utilize the university's extensive research expertise in 5G / 6G, IoT and cyber security, robotics, fibre and particle technology, and process technology.

As part of a new initiative to eliminate single-use plastic bags from the wastestream, Dick’s Sporting Goods is joining an industry consortium. Dick’s is committing to remove all single-use point-of-sale plastic bags from its stores by 2025. As a first step toward this goal, Dick’s is taking part in the Closed Loop Partners' Center for the Circular Economy’s Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag as the lead sports & outdoors sector partner. Dick’s will work alongside Closed Loop Partners founding partners CVS Health, Target and Walmart, as well as Kroger and Walgreens, in the Beyond the Bag initiative. Closed Loop Partners launched the initiative earlier this year to identify, test and implement viable design solutions and models that more sustainably serve the purpose of the current retail bag. The consortium recently launched the challenge in partnership with global design company IDEO, which is currently accepting ideas from across the globe to re-invent the current retail bag – which could include reusable models, new materials, or software and hardware innovations that eliminate the need for bags altogether.

REI Co-op announced today it will complete a 14-year commitment to be carbon neutral in its operations in 2020 and launched an ambitious new climate platform that will see the co-op more than halve its carbon footprint over the next decade – even as the company anticipates future growth in size and revenue. “The climate crisis is the greatest threat to the future of life outdoors and to REI’s business. The science is clear about what we, as a society, need to do to change that future. The world must halve its greenhouse gasses emissions by 2030, so that’s where REI – and the broader outdoor community – must lead,” said REI Co-op President and CEO Eric Artz. “Going forward, we’re embedding the impact of doing business, and the cost, into our business model.”

Amcor, a leading global developer and producer of responsible packaging, has received prequalification to carry How2Recycle’s® store drop-off label on consumer packaging for a variety of barrier and non-barrier specs in the AmPrima™ PE Plus heat resistant portfolio, subject to conditions like product application and final package design. “This is exciting for Amcor and our customers. It’s an outstanding step forward as we work toward our commitment to make all of our packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025,” said Amcor Flexibles North America Sales and Marketing Vice President Laurel Spencer. “Prequalification saves time, cost, and reduces risk for brand-owners and retailers by eliminating the need to engage external labs for recycle-ready testing in the development phase. In short, it allows our customers to take their packaging straight from package development to How2Recycle to request usage of the How2Recycle store drop-off label,” said Spencer.

A new survey conducted by global packaging leader Smurfit Kappa has revealed that consumers are making a statement by demanding more sustainable packaging from brands before making online fashion purchases. The survey, which was conducted with consumers across four European countries, found 41% of online fashion shoppers have become more eco-conscious when buying the latest fashion online since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. The research, which surveyed consumers in Germany, Ireland, The Netherlands and the UK, found nearly half of consumers purchase fashion items online once a month or more, reflecting its increasing popularity among both female (44%) and male (43%) shoppers. The research found: >23% of fashion consumers have researched a brand online to assess its level of sustainability >35% of fashion consumers stated they would not make an online purchase from a fashion company if they discovered its packaging wasn't eco-friendly >23% of those surveyed have re-purchased from a fashion brand based on its sustainability credentials

Georgia-Pacific announced today that it is now accepting mixed paper bales that contain single-use polyethylene (PE)-coated paper cups at its recycled paper mills in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Muskogee, Oklahoma. The development follows two years of partnership with the Foodservice Packaging Institute (FPI) and collaboration with the NextGen Consortium, a global initiative led by Closed Loop Partners with founding partners Starbucks and McDonald’s, to help open opportunities for paper cup recycling. PE coatings, along with any remaining liquid and food left behind from use, have historically left single-use paper cups out of the recovery and recycling process. GP, though, has proven through its extensive re-pulping trials that the Green Bay and Muskogee mills can effectively recapture valuable cup fiber from paper cups while screening out PE-coatings and reuse the fiber to make toilet tissue, napkins and paper towels. “As single-use paper cups have grown in popularity in recent years so, too, has paper cup waste. As a leading manufacturer of paper foodservice products, we continually look for ways to consume fewer resources as part of our longer-term strategy to identify solutions that benefit society. Accepting mixed paper bales containing PE-coated cups at our Green Bay and Muskogee mills is a significant step in this direction,” said John Mulcahy, vice president of sustainability for Georgia-Pacific, which manufactures the Dixie® brand of paper cups.

Holmen's paperboard and paper mills have been awarded the highest possible rating by the international assessment company Ecovadis. The paperboard mills in Iggesund and Workington as well as the paper mills Braviken and Hallsta have all been awarded Ecovadis Platinum, which means that all Holmen's mills belong to the absolute top tier of all assessed companies. Ecovadis assesses companies on the basis of their performance in four themes: environment, labour & human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement. With more than 65,000 assessments in over 200 sectors and 160 countries, Ecovadis is a guide for companies' choice of suppliers.

Sappi has joined businesses around the world in calling for ambitious, collective action for nature. Covid-19 is causing societies, businesses and governments around the world to focus on ways to emerge more economically resilient from the crisis. With nature at a tipping point – nearly one million species are at risk because of human activity – we also need to focus on how to reverse nature loss. With this in mind, Sappi Limited has signed up to Business for Nature’s Call to Action, a global coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and business groups including the International Chamber of Commerce, WWF, We Mean Business, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

In fact, it’s become so common that 7,500 companies issue sustainability or corporate responsibility reports in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative detailing various initiatives to reduce their environmental impact. It helps that this is a hot topic among consumers right now, with 77 percent of people wanting to learn ways to lead more sustainable lives. Companies have numerous options when it comes to answering the sustainability call. Among them, companies can introduce fleet vehicles with alternative energy sources, install green features such as solar panels, or use recycled and recyclable materials in their products and packaging. But sometimes it helps to get back to basics, particularly as the new school year begins. Approach learning the world of sustainability as a child would master learning their ABCs. Who knows — maybe you’ll discover a few new ideas to include in your company’s efforts, too.

Debuting 9/9/2020, a new documentary gives an inside look at the U.S. paper and packaging industry’s decades-long legacy of environmental stewardship. A story of grit, passion and dedication, “Paper Makers” provides a rare and intimate insight into how the industry’s foresters, mill workers and engineers have cared for the land, working in tandem with nature for generations. In a critical decade for climate action, “Paper Makers” looks at the philosophy and practices that have made the U.S. paper and packaging industry a vocal advocate for responsible land management, sustainable design and the protection of our planet’s most valuable resources. Paper is at the forefront of environmentally friendly innovation with top brands and corporations across personal care, food and beverage, and fashion, making the switch to paper packaging as part of their sustainable business strategies. There’s new attention on paper-based materials to provide solutions for some of society’s biggest environmental challenges. But how did the industry get here? Want to check out the film? Visit www.howlifeunfolds.com/paper-makers to watch the film and follow @HowLifeUnfolds on Instagram for more information.

Domtar recently received the new Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) recertification standard for the Canadian government lands that we manage in the Wabigoon forest. We successfully completed a surveillance audit on the Wabigoon Forest related to the new standards in July, and the auditor recommended that certification be maintained under the new Canadian FSC standard. “Our on-the-ground management practices, coupled with a rigorous provincially-mandated forest management planning process, help to hit the mark with FSC,” says Marie Cyr, general manager of the Dryden pulp mill. “We are proud of our record of sustainable forest management. The fact that the Dryden Mill has been operating in this forest area for over 100 years demonstrates that we are managing our forests sustainably.” The new Canadian FSC standard, which launched in June, replaces the previous National Boreal Standard and raises the bar for demonstrating sustainable forest management.

Plantma X combines soil scarification and mechanical planting – at the same time. SCA borrowed a machine for a few weeks to see if it could be the solution that would enable tomorrow’s efficient planting process. The machine looks almost like something from a Star Wars film when it crawls across the clearcut in the Graninge area. The two long swivelling arms extrude from the back and plant seedlings every time the arm tips reach the ground. Plantma X has been developed in a collaboration between Grangärde Konsult och Innovation and other companies*, together with Sveaskog. Over the course of a few summer weeks, SCA borrowed the machine to carry out its own trials. Click read more below for the rest of the article.

In the beginning of 2020 UPM committed to the United Nations Global Compact’s Business Ambition for 1.5°C, promising to pursue science-based measures to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C. “Investors, customers, the society at large – even school children – ask about companies’ sustainability actions,” says Sami Lundgren, Vice President, Responsibility at UPM. “It is important for us to do our part. I believe our employees are very proud that we have signed this commitment.” UPM will meet this commitment by novel uses of their products, reducing CO2 emissions and by practicing climate positive forestry. Cick read more below for the rest of the article

As part of its continued focus on global sustainability leadership and from Plastic to Purpose’ campaign, Ahlstrom-Munksjö has released its innovative process aid for Printed Circuit Board (PCB) and Copper Clad Laminates (CCL) laminating systems. OptiLayup™ PCB and CCL lamination aid boast sustainable features, while offering a cost-effective alternative and added technical-value compared to the plastic films traditionally used to protect the press tools, ensuring process performance in these markets. “Our ‘from Plastic to Purpose’ campaign aims at raising awareness around the world regarding the possibility of fiber-based solutions as a renewable option,” said Robyn Buss, Executive Vice President of Ahlstrom-Munksjö’s Food Packaging & Technical Solutions business area.

North Carolina State University is investigating the crucial role that SFI-certified forests play in facilitating landscape connectivity in a changing climate. Landscape connectivity represents the extent to which a landscape supports the ability of plants and animals to move across the landscape. Some species with a limited range, like salamanders or pitcher plants, depend on connected landscapes to maintain healthy populations. Connecting habitats has long been recognized as one of the keys to supporting conservation in landscapes dominated by people. But rapid changes to the earth’s climate and land use patterns mean new research is needed to ensure that conservation potential is maximized, while mitigating climate change impacts and limiting the loss of biodiversity.

Between our operations in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Maine, JDI Woodlands had 124 summer students who planted over 13 million trees this year. These students are dedicated, hardworking and are helping regenerate the forest for the future. A great incentive we offer to our Tree Planters if they are returning to school is between $750 - $1,000 scholarships. This year, we were pleased to give a total of $60,500 in scholarships to 71 planters!

An industrial pavilion and a road section, both in the Aveiro region, are the first visible results at real scale of using waste generated in the pulp and paper industry in precast concrete structures and in bituminous mixtures for roads paving in Portugal. The challenge, which is both complex and ambitious, emerged as part of the paperChain European project and is already being put into practice in Ílhavo and Cacia: using waste from pulp production, such as lime ash, dregs and grits (granular waste) as secondary raw materials in the construction sector, integrating them in a circular economy logic. The paperChain project includes 20 partners from five EU countries committed to circularity boosting). In Portugal, the entities involved include the University of Aveiro, The Navigator Company, Spral, Megavia, RAIZ Research Institute and the Sustainable Habitat Cluster. Called "New niche markets for waste from the pulp and paper industry based on the circular economy", it is coordinated by the company Acciona Construction (Spain).

Ahlstrom-Munksjö is one of the founding members of the #GreenSource initiative to promote the role of forest-fiber industries in the effort to achieve the EU’s climate neutrality target by 2050. #GreenSource brings together members of the European Pulp Industry Sector Association (EPIS) and the Confederation of European Paper Industries (Cepi). The forest-fiber industry wishes to play a central role in offering solutions that respond to the needs of the European citizens and contribute to a sustainable lifestyle, while making sure that forests keep growing, absorbing CO2 and protecting biodiversity.

UPM is one of the founding members of the #GreenSource initiative, to promote the role of forest-fibre industries in the effort to achieve the EU’s climate neutrality target by 2050. #GreenSource brings together members of EPIS, the European Pulp Industry Sector Association and Cepi, the Confederation of European Paper Industries. The forest fibre industry wish to play a central role in offering solutions that responds to the needs of the European citizens and contribute to a sustainable lifestyle while making sure that forests keep growing, absorbing CO2 and protecting biodiversity.

Heinzel Group is a member of EPIS (European Pulp Industry Sector) and therefore supports the #GreenSource initiative to promote the role of forest-fibre industries in the effort to achieve the EU’s climate neutrality target by 2050. The forest-fibre industry wishes to play a central role in offering solutions that respond to the needs of the European citizens and contribute to a sustainable lifestyle while making sure that forests keep growing, absorbing CO2 and protecting biodiversity.

The report outlines the company’s wide-ranging sustainability efforts, the use of recycled content key among them. In 2019, the company increased its use overall of post-consumer recycled (PCR) fiber and resin in its products. For its fiber-based products, the percentage of recycled fiber in the company’s supply chain was nearly half the total procured. When using post-consumer recycled (PCR) material was not possible, Novolex focused on procuring Chain of Custody (COC) certified prime fiber content traceable to the original source. When combined, 69% of fiber volume was either PCR or COC-certified content, an increase of 4% over 2018. Plastic resin used by Novolex consisted of 4% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content and 20% post-industrial resin in 2019, the same percentages as the prior year. While the reported 4% PCR is the same in 2018 and 2019, Novolex purchases of PCR material increased in total pounds. That was driven in part by the company’s two world-class polyethylene recycling centers, which specialize in recycling plastic consumer retail bags as well as films such as dry-cleaning bags, newspaper bags and other items labeled for “store drop off” recycling programs.

The Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC) can now add Inteplast Engineered Films (IEF) to its roster of members, which includes the likes of DuPont, Hello Fresh, Clorox, and Fitbit. IEF, a manufacturer of technologically advanced film for printers, converters, and various markets, is excited to join forces with SPC’s growing collective focused on this area of sustainable and eco-friendly innovation. IEF, already expanding its sustainable film portfolio, expects to take advantage of forging partnerships within this valuable network of progressive brands such as Amazon, FedEx, and many more.

We achieved two of our six major goals: We reduced our total direct greenhouse gas emissions and indirect emissions from purchased energy by 19 percent at our pulp and paper mills, compared to our goal of a 15 percent reduction from 2010 levels. We also completed development of a water usage model for our mills to measure and more strategically manage the full cost of using water. In addition, we have nearly achieved two other Domtar sustainability goals that center on certified fiber procurement and employee engagement (as measured by establishing EarthChoice® Ambassador teams at each of our facilities). Finally, we are actively working toward achieving our final two Domtar sustainability goals — targeting a 0.50 recordable safety incident rate and ensuring a 40 percent reduction in waste to landfill from pulp and paper mills. click read more for more great info

This week, the supermarket chain Morrisons has launched a “paper bag only” trail in eight stores. If successful, the chain will consider removing plastic bags from all stores and will offer paper bags only. Morrisons started to give their customers the choice between paper and plastic bags earlier this year when they introduced reusable paper bags into their stores at a 20p charge (the same price as a plastic “bag for life”). However, since they have seen little evidence to suggest that the plastic bags are being re-used and therefore, continue to have a negative impact on the environment, they are considering ditching them altogether. Andy Atkinson, Group Customer and Marketing Director, at Morrisons said: “We are taking another meaningful step that will remove an estimated 1,300 tonnes of plastic out of the environment each year. Our customers have told us that reducing plastic is their number one environmental concern so introducing the paper bag across the nation will provide another way of reducing the plastic in their lives.”

Amcor announced today it has joined the U.S. Plastics Pact, a collaborative, solutions-driven initiative to create a path forward to a circular economy for plastics in the United States by 2025. The U.S. Plastics Pact is focused on four ambitious goals intended to drive significant systems change by unifying diverse cross-sector approaches, setting a national strategy, and creating scalable solutions. The first North American Pact of its kind, the U.S. Plastics Pact is a collaboration led by The Recycling Partnership, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

UPM Raflatac, a global leading manufacturer of pressure sensitive labels, is pleased to announce it has joined the U.S. Plastics Pact. This collaborative, solutions-driven initiative is rooted in four ambitious goals intended to drive significant systems change by unifying diverse cross-sector approaches, setting a national strategy, and creating scalable solutions to create a path forward toward a circular economy for plastics in the United States by 2025. The first North American Pact of its kind, the U.S. Pact is a collaboration led by The Recycling Partnership, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Activators like UPM Raflatac recognize that significant, systemwide change is imperative to realize a circular economy for plastics. As such, the U.S. Pact will convene more than 70 brands, retailers, NGOs, and government agencies across the plastics value chain to bring one voice to U.S. packaging through coordinated initiatives and innovative solutions for rethinking products, packaging, and business models.

Kimberly-Clark today announced it has joined the U.S. Plastics Pact, a collaborative, solutions-driven initiative rooted in four ambitious goals intended to drive significant systems change by unifying diverse cross-sector approaches, setting a national strategy, and creating scalable solutions to create a path forward toward a circular economy for plastics in the United States by 2025. The first North American Pact of its kind, the U.S. Pact is a collaboration led by The Recycling Partnership, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Ellen MacArthur Foundation. As part of the U.S. Plastics Pact, Kimberly-Clark and its trusted brands including Kleenex®, Cottonelle® and Huggies® join more than 70 brands, retailers, NGOs, and government agencies across the plastics value chain working to bring one voice to U.S. packaging through coordinated initiatives and innovative solutions for rethinking products, packaging, and business models.

Domtar has successfully completed a surveillance audit on the Wabigoon Forest for the new Forest Stewardship Council (FSC®) National Standard for Canada. The audit took place the week of July 13th ending with the auditor’s recommendation for certification to be maintained under the new Canadian standard. This new standard replaced the previous FSC® Boreal standard and has set the bar high for demonstrating sustainable forest management. The Wabigoon Forest was first certified to the FSC® standard in 2008. “Our on-the-ground management practices, coupled with a rigorous provincially mandated forest management planning process, helps to hit the mark with FSC®,” said Marie Cyr, general manager of the Dryden pulp mill. “We are proud of our record of sustainable forest management. The fact that the Dryden mill has been operating in this forest area for over 100 years demonstrates that we are managing our forests sustainably.”

You may know Georgia-Pacific for making paper towels, plates, cups and toilet paper. But we also preserve land for birds, bears and other wildlife. In this the video below meet wildlife biologist Bobby Maddrey, and hear how satellites keep six million acres of forests protected in this unique to GP program. Take a deeper look between the trees at Georgia-Pacific’s decade of dedication to forest mapping. With the combination of forest mapping and the advancement of satellite monitoring, GP is now able to receive automatic alerts if changes happen to tracts of land and to assess vegetation and connect with foresters directly, improving the protection of endangered forests in real-time.

AptarGroup, Inc. is proud to announce its science-based targets have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). Aptar’s targets approved by the SBTi are: *Aptar commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 28% by 2030 from a 2019 base year (well-below 2°C) *Aptar commits to increase annual sourcing of renewable electricity from 57% of total consumption in 2019 to 100% by 2030 *Aptar also commits to reduce absolute scope 3 GHG emissions 14% by 2030 from a 2019 base year (in-line with 2°C)

This August and September, UPM will be organizing forest trips for 6th grade primary school students in five different Finnish cities, where UPM’s mills are located. The trips will take place if the COVID-19 situation allows it. This is the fourth time that UPM has organized such excursions. The aim is to provide pupils with a positive forest experience and increase knowledge of how Finnish forests are used. During the excursions, which are called “Commercial forest — Development and Sustainable Use,” pupils will learn about the commercial and recreational use of forests, wildlife management and wood-based products. In addition, every pupil gets a chance to plant a seedling that will become a part of a forest. With 40 classes taking part, there will be roughly 800 pupils and teachers in total taking part during these excursions. Due to the COVID-19 situation, the number of classes is smaller than before. Despite the exceptional circumstances, the forest excursions will provide a safe experience for pupils: sp ecial arrangements have been made for the excursions, e.g. taking into account safety distances and hygiene.

Many banks, utilities, telecoms and other service providers continue to encourage (and sometimes force) their customers to switch from paper to electronic communications, using claims that electronic communication is “greener,” “saves trees” or “protects the planet” as justification. One can only conclude that the CEOs of these companies are either 1) misinformed about the inherent sustainability of print and paper, the rapidly expanding environmental footprint of digital communications or both, 2) trusting marketing teams who don’t bother to validate environmental claims or 3) seeking to save costs by ignoring established environmental marketing rules from the U.S. FTC and Canadian Standards Association that say marketers “should not make broad, unqualified environmental benefit claims like “green” and that “claims should be clear, prominent and specific.” There’s no arguing that the use of electronic devices has exploded over the last decade. According to a 2019 study by the Pew Research Center, the vast majority of Americans (81%) now own smartphones, up from just 35% in 2011. Nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults now own desktop or laptop computers, and roughly half now own tablets and e-readers. This boom has resulted in many advances that make our lives more efficient, productive and enjoyable. But it has also brought with it serious and increasing environmental, health and economic consequences.

Smurfit Kappa Colombia has announced a new alliance with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Colombia to highlight the protection and conservation of forests in the country. Under the new partnership, both organisations will work together to restore, expand and protect forests and ecosystems that are the habitat of several species of flora and fauna. Commenting on the new alliance, Juan Guillermo Castaneda, CEO of Smurfit Kappa The Americas, said: “This new alliance is further proof that sustainability is at the core of our business and that Smurfit Kappa has a deep commitment to the circular economy and contributing to the communities in which we operate.”

‘Chichibu Mayu’ means ‘cocoon-shaped marshmallow’ in Japanese and is the name of the world’s first forest-born sweets to achieve SGEC/PEFC certification. The forest sweets are made from the sap of maple trees grown in the SGEC/PEFC-certified municipal forests of Chichibu in Saitama, Japan. The forest-born sweets are produced by Chichibu Nakamuraya, a company that has been operating in Chichibu since 1924, and were put on the market this June by Mori for Forest Certification Inc. (MFC). The packaging of the sweets carries both the MFC and SGEC/PEFC labels.

In the world of electronics and digital, new records are set every day. Speed, size, image resolution, connectivity, simplicity – with every new launch or software update, performance parameters are increased and limits pushed further. It’s got to the point where there are no surprises in the digital industry. Indeed, the only surprise would be if a device managed to lower its performance or increase in size. However, one record the electronics industry won’t be proud to break is its own size of e-waste. In 2019, the industry was responsible for a gigantic 53.6 million metric tonnes (Mt) of e-waste across the world. That’s equivalent to the weight of 350 cruise ships the size of the Queen Mary 2, and up by an alarming 21% over the past five years. Even more troubling is the fact that, at the current rate, global e-waste will reach 74 Mt by 2030, almost double the 2014 figure. These figures make e-waste the fastest-growing domestic waste stream in the world – a fact that should make everyone take a very different look at their devices.

The platinum rating is a new category rating for CSR performance and this award puts Mondi in the top 1% of companies in its industry, a position it has held since 2015. EcoVadis, the global business sustainability ratings organisation, annually assesses companies’ performance on international sustainability standards1 covering four key areas: environment, labour and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement. Mondi’s overall score of 82% for 2020 is up from 78% in last year’s assessment, with 90% in the Environment and Labour & Human Rights categories. "Sustainability is core to Mondi’s approach, whether that’s providing sustainable packaging and paper solutions for our customers, looking after our people and communities, or promoting biodiversity in our forests. To be recognised by EcoVadis as an industry leader is testament to our dedication across the value chain and the action we are taking to deliver the UN SDGs as we look towards a more sustainable future." Gladys Naylor, Group Head of Sustainable Development at Mondi

Sappi Europe received a platinum score in the latest EcoVadis rating. The leading global provider of sustainable woodfibre products and solutions retained its top position from the previous year among the leading one per cent of all companies assessed which exhibit high activity and responsibility with regard to corporate social responsibility (CSR). •Sappi Europe receives top rating for sustainability •Unlocking the power of renewable resources to benefit people, communities and the planet. As part of its clear strategic goals in relation to sustainability and environmental protection, Sappi reached a new milestone. The market leader in environmentally friendly packaging and graphic papers received a platinum score in this year’s sustainability rating from EcoVadis, establishing itself as one of the top performers, with a score well above the overall average. The EcoVadis rating covers a total of 21 criteria, which in turn are divided into four general areas: environment, labour and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.

Biofuels offer a climate-positive solution that society cannot afford to ignore. Panu Routasalo explains how UPM is spearheading efforts to replace carbon-intensive fossil energy with plant power. Thirteen years ago Panu Routasalo was working as an engineer in oil production. Around the same time, UPM also stood at a watershed point in its history. Squeezed by digitalisation, forestry was branded a sunset industry and doomed to a rapid demise. Prematurely, it turns out. Today forestry is a thriving sunrise industry, with UPM leading the pack as an innovator of sustainable wood-based alternatives to oil-based products. Routasalo heads this pioneering work in his current role as UPM’s Vice President of Biofuels.

Sustainability has always been a core aspect of our business—present in the products we make and the way we operate. Now, the launch of our new Twentyby30 program will accelerate our efforts across all three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, social and governance. Designed to address issues of critical global concern, Twentyby30 outlines 20 measurable goals to be achieved by 2030 or sooner, with each goal falling within one of the following pillars of action: *Climate Action *Resource Efficiency *Optimum Circularity *Working Together *Never Compromise. With these focus areas, we are pledging to raise our global performance around energy, water, waste, material use efficiency, recycling, employee health and safety (EH&S), Diversity & Inclusion, responsible and ethical sourcing, food contact and chemical safety and other topics. All program pillars are underpinned by responsible governance and ethics, which guide every business decision we make.

DS Smith, a leading sustainable packaging company, and Aquapak, an innovative developer of biodegradable polymer, are teaming up to develop the next generation of packaging solutions. By working together, the two organisations can provide sustainable fibre based packaging solutions that will replace hard to recycle packaging made from combined materials such as cardboard and plastic. After a period of pilot trials with the combined materials, focusing on both performance and recyclability, the partnership will now begin developing practical applications. This includes a range of fibre-based packaging where traditional plastic films can be replaced with Aquapak’s HydropolTM, a biodegradable and water-soluble polymer that will help to improve the recycling process.

Smurfit Kappa has today announced it has been chosen to participate in an innovative energy research project on renewable energy storage. The HYFLEXPOWER project will see Smurfit Kappa’s Saillat Paper Mill in France become the first plant in the world to introduce an integrated hydrogen gas turbine demonstrator. The announcement comes as the European Commission published its ‘Hydrogen Strategy for a Climate-Neutral Europe’ report which outlines the essential role that hydrogen will play within the European Green Deal carbon neutrality and energy transition initiative. The highly innovative research that will take part at the Saillat Mill, which will mainly be funded by the European Commission, aims to prove that hydrogen can be produced and stored from renewable electricity and ultimately replace up to 100 percent of the natural gas currently used by combined heat and power plants.

We are pleased to announce our Sustainable Menu of printing papers to meet the quickly changing menu needs of bars, restaurants, and hospitality businesses operating under stringent COVID-19 regulations. Made with the environment in mind, all Monadnock’s fine text and cover papers are FSC® Certified (FSC C018866), manufactured carbon neutral (VERs) and made with 100% renewable Green-e certified wind-powered electricity (RECs) under a third-party certified ISO 14001 Environmental Management System. The Sustainable Menu features Monadnock’s new Astrolite PC 100 Velvet C2S, notable for its bright white appearance and double-side coating; Astrolite PC 100, which is smooth, bright, and uncoated; and Astrolite PC 100 Digital+, which is 3-star certified for HP Indigo presses.

If the people who depend on forests for their livelihoods aren’t included in conversations about sustainable forest management, how can it be truly sustainable? After all, people and forests are closely linked. Forests contribute to the livelihoods of some 1.6 billion people worldwide, the majority of which are in rural regions of developing countries. This means sustainable forest management and certification have the potential to positively impact a huge number of lives around the world. This subject is at the heart of both PEFC and Building and Wood Worker’s International (BWI). Earlier this month, our CEO Ben Gunneberg and Coen van der Veer from BWI came together to talk about this vital issue. Check out their conversation in the video below:

Avery Dennison Label and Packaging Materials announced that its Clear Biaxially Oriented Polypropylene (BOPP) film portfolio has been certified to comply with the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) Critical Guidance Protocol for HDPE recycling. The Avery Dennison BOPP portfolio is the first to pass testing, and the company is committed to expanding the portfolio of film materials with pressure sensitive emulsion acrylic adhesives that meet the APR HDPE Critical Guidance moving forward. The announcement gives brands in the personal care and beauty space, as well as other segments that use Avery Dennison clear BOPP films on high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastics, validation that the labels stay with the container without impacting the recycling process. The APR Critical Guidance is a comprehensive laboratory scale protocol that is used to assess the compatibility of packaging innovations with reclamation systems. The Critical Guidance for HDPE-CG-01 was released on July 20, 2020. Avery Dennison is the first label manufacturer to achieve certification in accordance with the new guidelines. The company has previously achieved certification with APR Critical Guidance for PET plastics.

Headquartered in Boston, Sappi North America (SNA) is an industry leader with more than 2,000 employees in the United States and Canada, and four mills with the capacity to produce 1.35 million metric tons of paper and packaging and 1.17 million metric tons of kraft, high-yield and dissolving pulp. SNA has been a member of Two Sides since its beginning, and both organizations benefit greatly from this strong partnership. With its long-standing commitment to employee and product safety and its dedication to delivering products that meet customers’ needs for more sustainable solutions, SNA is an invaluable source of environmental expertise and thought leadership for Two Sides. With its global network and wide-ranging sustainability resources, Two Sides helps amplify Sappi’s voice in telling the great environmental story of print and paper products.

Two Sides, the paper advocacy group that promotes the sustainable and attractive attributes of print, paper and paper packaging has extended its reach and launched the campaign in Latin America. Two Sides has been established in Brazil for many years, but recently announced the expansion of its activities across all 19 countries in Hispanic Latin America with the support of entities representing the sector, who are part of the “Confederación Latioamericana de la Industria Gráfica”.

Flint Group‘s 2020 Sustainability Report outlines the company‘s performance in three key areas—Governance, Environment and Social – detailing the way in which Flint Group has incorporated sustainable business practices into its daily activities. Governance: reflects the company strong culture of integrity and compliance. Environment: Divisional sustainable initiatives present the company strategy with a clear focus on energy usage, water consumption, waste reduction and recycling. Social: shows some of our actions to make the world a better place both for Flint Group employees and for those around us.

Convenience store chain Circle K has released its first sustainability report, and PEFC-certified packaging plays a critical role as they look to reduce their environmental footprint, use resources efficiently and help protect our planet. Using certified paper was an important requirement in the tender process for Circle K’s new range of holistic food packaging within all stores across Europe. “Food is a crucial part of our business, and with food comes packaging. As we serve our great food in all European markets, this means we use large volumes of paper within in our food packaging,” explains Vibeke Veiseth, Senior Concept Development at Circle K Europe.

Certification body representatives and trainers are invited to register for one of our upcoming online Initial Sessions, as part of the PEFC Training Recognition Programme. This Initial Session is the first phase for certification bodies wishing to get their internal PEFC chain of custody training programme recognized by PEFC, through the PEFC Training Recognition Programme (TRP). Once your internal training programme is approved, you will be able to train your personnel to carry out audits against the 2020 PEFC Chain of Custody standard.

Mondi Syktyvkar, part of Mondi Group, a global leader in packaging and paper, has successfully completed a major step in the modernisation of its power plant, with the installation of a new bark boiler. Mondi Syktyvkar worked with Valmet as main equipment supplier to execute this transformation. This project will allow the plant to significantly improve its environmental performance and to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.

Stora Enso and Helsinki Olympic Stadium have signed a partnership agreement to develop low-carbon, eco-friendly operations at the stadium by promoting the use of renewable materials and circular economy solutions. Stora Enso explores reusing products as well as recycling used materials to give high-quality wood fibers a second life in new products that will be available at the stadium for different services and operations. Stora Enso and Helsinki Olympic Stadium share the aim of promoting the use of renewable materials in customer and food service packaging to reduce the climate impact of stadium operations. In addition, the aim is to ensure that materials get recycled to a high degree. Packaging made of renewable materials has a high recycling rate throughout Europe and it typically has a low carbon footprint that is further reduced when recycled.

The Home Depot®, the world's largest home improvement retailer, announced companywide sustainability progress in its 2020 Responsibility Report, which outlines the company's 2019 progress on its corporate responsibility strategic pillars: focus on people, operate sustainably and strengthen communities. The report also introduces several new goals and provides an update on the company's recent response to COVID-19 and social equality issues. New goals include a commitment to produce and procure energy from 335 megawatts of renewable and alternative energy projects by 2025 – equivalent to the amount of energy it takes to power more than 90,000 homes. Additionally, the company pledged to eliminate expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film from its private brand packaging by 2023. As part of its existing pledge to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50 percent by 2035, The Home Depot reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent in 2019.

Walgreens Boots Alliance is pleased to announce that it has joined the United Nations Global Compact Initiative, a voluntary leadership platform for the development, implementation and disclosure of responsible business practices. The UN Global Compact is a call to companies everywhere to align their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment and anti-corruption, and to take action in support of UN goals and issues embodied in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). “We are proud to join the UN Global Compact, reinforcing our long-term commitment to taking responsible business action to create the world we all want,” said Ornella Barra, co-chief operating officer of WBA and chair of the company’s CSR Committee. “Our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy is aligned to the SDGs through four key areas: Healthy Communities, Healthy Planet, Sustainable Marketplace and Healthy and Inclusive Workplace.”

The American Forest & Paper Association released its 2020 Sustainability Report, highlighting the paper and wood products industry’s sustainability efforts, including members’ progress toward achieving the Better Practices, Better Planet 2020 sustainability goals. 2020 AF&PA Sustainability Report accomplishments (based on 2018 calendar year performance, except where noted) include: • AF&PA member companies achieved a 38.4 percent improvement in the safety incidence rate from the 2006 baseline, surpassing the 25 percent goal. • AF&PA members adhere to sustainable fiber procurement principles, which assure that wood is sourced from suppliers who are committed to sustainable management and harvesting practices. • AF&PA members’ purchased energy use per ton of product was 13.3 percent lower than the baseline year, surpassing the goal to improve energy efficiency by 10 percent. • Members surpassed their goal, reducing GHG emissions – measured in carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2eq) per ton of product – by 23.2 percent from the 2005 baseline.

Earlier this month, a crew of Alberta Junior Forest Rangers (JFR) made a big contribution to forest health while learning about one of the most challenging jobs in our industry—tree planting. The Fox Creek JFR crew, composed of eight high school students and two leaders, spent a day planting 2000 pine seedlings at the Huestis Demonstration Forest. The tree planting was guided by one of Millar Western’s Woodlands summer interns, Garreth Carey, who is studying Forest Technology at NAIT. Located within Millar Western’s Forest Management Agreement area, the Huestis Demonstration Forest is a few minutes’ drive northwest of Whitecourt. The site includes a seven-kilometre driving loop with interpretive signs, informing visitors about how a forest can offer recreational opportunities, sustain wildlife, and provide resources for wood products, all while continuing to grow and thrive. Huestis is a working forest, containing cutblocks of varying ages that have been successfully reforested in decades past or are currently being regenerated after recent harvest.

PEFC International meets all Dutch procurement criteria for timber. This is the conclusion of the Dutch Timber Procurement Assessment Committee (TPAC), that gave full marks to PEFC International. TPAC assesses certification systems for compliance with the sustainable procurement policy of the Dutch government. Following the assessment, TPAC has recommended the Dutch State Secretary for Infrastructure and the Environment to continue the approval and acceptance of PEFC with regards to the Dutch procurement policy.

Amazon and We Mean Business, a global nonprofit coalition working with businesses to accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon economy, announced they have partnered to establish the world’s most comprehensive effort to drive companies to adopt more ambitious carbon emissions reduction goals. The We Mean Business coalition works with over 1,200 companies, with a total market capitalization of more than $24.8 trillion, to drive business action and policy ambition on climate change and increase chances of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. The partnership will: *Encourage companies to take a leadership position and accelerate their goals to meet The Climate Pledge — the commitment co-founded by Amazon and Global Optimism to achieve net-zero carbon by 2040, a decade ahead of the Paris Agreement. *Mobilize supply chains, including small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to take and scale-up measurable and direct action on climate change. *Determine ambitious and accountable means for companies to credibly integrate Nature-Based Solutions in their climate strategies.

Heinzel Group is a member of the “4evergreen” alliance, which strives to increase the share of fiber-based packaging in order to sustainably reduce the impact on climate and the environment. In addition, the alliance aims to increase knowledge and raise awareness of the advantages of fiber-based materials in society. Among other things, the initiative advocates the development of optimized collection systems and appropriate recycling infrastructures. Members of the “4evergeen” alliance are represented throughout the entire fiber-based packaging value chain: paper, board and packaging producers, technology and material suppliers, waste sorting and collection companies, and retailers.

Smurfit Kappa has unveiled a new, state-of-the-art solar panel system in its Colombian Forestry operation. The Solar One photovoltaic system, which was developed with renewable energy provider Celsia, will generate 50% of the energy needs of the nursery and the entomology and plant pathology laboratories. The 168 panels that comprise the system will generate an estimated 78,000 kWh/year reducing CO2 emissions by 29.7 tonnes annually. The new system has been installed in an optimum location in the forestry nursery to maximise exposure to the hours of sunshine available.

A Sappi-sponsored programme which helps communities adjacent to forestry plantations to become beekeepers, has shown some unexpectedly encouraging results during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. Non-profit consultant and founder of the African Honey Bee programme, Guy Stubbs, who has more than 30 years’ experience in small and micro-enterprise development, was struck by the incredible resilience being demonstrated by the families that have been part of this beekeeping project. Collectively, since the beginning of the year, the participating families have harvested about five tonnes of honey, earning close to R360,000, despite the national lockdown. During a recent survey undertaken in the Sokhulu community in KwaZulu-Natal (North of Richards Bay), where the project has been running for the last couple of years and a new community in Thembalethu, Mpumalanga where training had not yet begun, Guy noticed some marked differences in people’s approach to the situation brought about by the international health crisis. “While the families in Thembalethu were watching TV and waiting for government to hand out food parcels, the 100 families that we interviewed in Sokhulu were producing and even selling vegetables, chickens, eggs and honey,” he says. All 100 families were producing honey, 85 were growing vegetables, 27 were producing eggs and 39 were producing chickens for meat,” he says.

In 2011, Resolute made an ambitious commitment: to reduce our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (scope 1 and 2) by 65% by 2015, compared to 2000 levels. Thanks to significant efforts deployed across our operations, we reached our goal ahead of schedule. But we didn’t stop there – at the end of 2019, we reached a new high of 83%. That’s the equivalent of taking over 2 million cars off the road! Resolute continues to seek opportunities to reduce emissions and increase efficiencies. In 2019, in addition to achieving a 65% reduction in indirect emissions (scope 2) at our Coosa Pines (Alabama) pulp mill through the modernization of the cogeneration turbine, we increased operational stability and made improvements to the power boiler at our Saint-Félicien (Quebec) pulp mill; optimized the electrical power boilers at our Alma and Kénogami (Quebec) paper mills; improved control of combustion on the boiler at our Baie-Comeau (Quebec) newsprint mill; and completed the optimization project at our Thunder Bay (Ontario) pulp and paper mill for a 20% reduction in direct emissions (scope 1).

Right in time for the back-to-school shopping season, Walmart is strengthening our sustainable sourcing requirements for products that contain paper and pulp (excluding wood pencils) sold in Stationery departments across our U.S. stores. Walmart requires these products be made from either recycled material, virgin fiber certified to standards of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) or Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), or a mix of recycled and certified virgin fiber. With this step, we are extending our sourcing approach for paper products in Stationery departments across our U.S. stores to include both private and national brands. That means customers can expect the same commitment to sustainability across all the brands available in Stationery departments of our U.S. stores.

For the first time in 230 years, Britain has completed 67 days, 22 hours and 55 minutes without burning coal to generate electricity, due in part to our renewable wood pellets. The last time coal was burned at any of Britain's four coal-fired power stations was April 10, 2020, and began again on June 16, according to the National Grid, marking the longest period without deriving energy from the fossil fuel since 1790, the start of the Industrial Revolution. This coincides with the one year anniversary of Grand River Pellets. These pellets displace coal and other fossil fuels in power generation and heating and have played a role in achieving this historic environmental milestone in the UK. The pellets come from wood sourced from environmental certified forests owned or managed by Irving Woodlands.

How many trees are there on Earth? It sounds like an impossible question, but researchers at the Crowther Lab have come up with a number: 3.04 trillion – or roughly 422 trees per person. That may seem huge, but it is a far cry from what it used to be. Collecting data from over 400,000 forest plots worldwide, the Zurich-based ecological lab setup by British ecologist Tom Crowther estimated there are 46% fewer trees today than when human agriculture started 12,000 years ago, but humans could reset the dial and tackle the climate crisis through mass tree planting. According to Crowther’s report, planting one trillion trees globally could remove up to 200 billion tonnes of carbon over the next 50-100 years.

The International Council of Forest and Paper Associations (ICFPA) recently announced its biennial international Blue Sky Young Researchers Award contest to generate interest and raise awareness around innovations taking place in the world of forestry. The ICFPA is an international group representing twenty-eight countries from around the world that liaises with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UN FAO) on forest policy development and shares leading practices. It supports important dialogue across this global network to promote global forest policy commitments on sustainable forest management, recycling, innovation, water conservation, mitigating climate change, ensuring a safe and inclusive workplace, and optimizing the use of environmentally-friendly wood and paper-based products.

Kimberly-Clark has announced its new 2030 sustainability strategy and goals, aimed at addressing the social and environmental challenges of the next decade with commitments to improve the lives and wellbeing of one billion people in underserved communities around the world with the smallest environmental footprint. "These extraordinary times remind us why our purpose is more important than ever. Our values, that have guided us for nearly 150 years, will continue to shape our response to the challenges ahead," said Mike Hsu, Chairman and CEO, Kimberly-Clark. "I am inspired by our ambition to advance the well-being of one billion people around the world and proud of the significant environmental commitments that we are making to address the impact our products have on the environment." The ambitious strategy is outlined in the company's 2019 Global Sustainability Report, which reflects progress towards the company's Sustainability 2022 strategy and its pivot to 2030.

Join us next Wednesday for our latest ‘In conversation with…’ webinar! We’ll be joined by Coen van der Veer from Building and Wood Worker's International (BWI) to discuss how forest certification improves the lives of the people living and working in the forest. The webinar is free to attend and takes place 15 July at 11:00-12:00 CEST. Do you know how many people worldwide are directly affected by forests? The formal forestry sector employs around 13 million people globally, while forests contribute to the livelihoods of some 1.6 billion people worldwide. The figures are impressive.

Lund University and Tetra Pak have recently signed a five-year strategic partnership agreement, expanding on their rich history of collaboration on packaging logistics, food technology and packaging materials. Together, Lund University and Tetra Pak will aim to create new industry-academia development opportunities, promote the sharing of resources and competencies, explore opportunities to enrich ideas, and create a platform of exchange between students and professionals. Collaborative working is key to how Tetra Pak operates as a business and this partnership makes no exception especially to collectively address areas such as circular and bio-based economy. Industry-academia cooperation is critical for the company to fostering new solutions within the food value chain and perfecting numerous industrial processes. By collaborating with Lund University, Tetra Pak has been able to advance the mixing of industrial emulsified products and the forming of new package shapes and formats.

UPS announced the launch of its 18th annual Sustainability Report, “Accelerating Sustainable Solutions.” The digital Report is fully interactive and details efforts that took place during 2019 to advance the company’s 2020 and 2025 sustainability goals in alignment with its enterprise strategy. Most notable is surpassing four goals one year ahead of schedule, including: $123.8 million in charitable contributions, 21.7 million employee volunteer hours, 15.4 million trees planted, and, a 3.1% reduction in auto accident frequency.

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and Project Learning Tree Canada (PLT Canada), an initiative of SFI, are pleased to welcome Dawn Carr, Executive Director of the Canadian Parks Council, to SFI’s 18-member Board of Directors. Carr has a successful track record of collaborating with SFI and PLT Canada. Notably, through the Canadian Parks Council and its network of national, provincial and territorial parks, she has supported, and continues to support, hundreds of high-quality work experiences for youth across Canada as part of PLT Canada’s Green Jobs program. “I’m thrilled to be joining the SFI and PLT Canada Board of Directors. It is a welcome opportunity to contribute to an organization that is clearly committed to sustainability and growing the community of future forest and conservation professionals,” says Carr. “Nurturing a conservation ethic among young professionals is critical for sustaining nature and our collective health and wellbeing. I’m really looking forward to contributing my time and energy to help make a positive difference.”

Some highlights from the 2019 report. 60% green energy use from renewable fuels like biomass – up by 7% from 5 years ago; 22% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over the past 5 years; 12% reduction in water usage over the past 5 years per tonne of tissue product made; 6% reduction in overall (all operations) water usage of the past 5 years; 32% increase in conservation sites over the past 5 years as part of our voluntary, award winning Unique Areas program in Canada and the U.S.; 17% increase in waste that is diverted from landfill for beneficial use over the past 5 years.

We are holding two sessions as part of our PEFC Training Recognition Programme (TRP) for certification bodies. The sessions will focus on technical calibration for the 2020 standards and the certification body internal training recognition requirements. Following this training, certification bodies can apply for recognition of their internal trainings. Once approved, they can provide internal PEFC training to their own auditors. Both sessions will be held online over three half-days, approximately four hours a day. We are holding the sessions at two different times, to ensure certification bodies around the world are able to attend.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared, Canada’s forest products industry has been hard at work delivering urgently needed, critical products that are helping Canadians and Americans weather this unprecedented crisis. Our industry is a vital part of supply chains that produce a range of in-demand goods like masks and gowns for the health care sector; packaging for food, pharmaceuticals, and online purchases; and hygiene products like tissue and toilet paper. Because of its important role, the Government of Canada designated the forest sector an essential service, to prevent shortages of key items we need and use every day. Despite the value placed on our products, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a U.S.-based lobby group, has chosen this time to release a report critical of Canada’s forest sector. Regrettably, this report misrepresents our industry and makes numerous false claims and accusations. It states, for example, that toilet paper production is putting the boreal forests at risk. In reality, forest products from Canada’s boreal region can be counted among the most responsibly made in the world.

By buying PEFC-certified products, we can all help support local communities to continue looking after our forests. Learn more about the importance of supporting sustainable forest management from our CEO Ben Gunneberg! “Although we have already been reaching out to over a million people to safeguard the forests and to manage them in a sustainable way, we do have a problem. When the shoppers in the shop see a wooden product, they still think that they are participating in the destruction of trees,” he explains. “They are not realising that by buying these products they’re helping local communities and they’re safeguarding those forests that they love.”

Two Sides North America today announced the launch of Love Paper, a new campaign designed to raise consumer awareness of the unique and inherently sustainable characteristics of print, paper and paper-based packaging. The centerpiece of the campaign is a consumer-friendly website, lovepaperna.org, where the click of a mouse reveals surprising facts about how print and paper products contribute to a sustainable future for us all. “As consumers become increasingly concerned about the environmental impacts of the publications they read, the products they buy and the packaging those products come in, they need factual, science-based information to make informed purchasing decisions,” says Two Sides North America President Phil Riebel. “But all too often, they have little more than unsubstantiated marketing claims like ‘go green, go paperless’ or ‘going paperless saves trees’ to guide them. We created the Love Paper campaign to make it easy for anyone to get verifiable facts about the sustainability of print and paper products from a wide variety of trusted sources.”

The U.S. paper industry has met or exceeded a 63 percent recycling rate since 2009. Paper and wood products are widely used across the United States — from toilet paper and paper towels to corrugated and paper bags used to deliver items to your home. And these essential products have something in common — recyclability. Recycled wood fiber can be used at least seven times to create new products, and approximately 80 percent of U.S. paper mills depend on recovered fiber from recycling operations to make the everyday, essential products we rely on.

Ahlstrom-Munksjö has been awarded with EcoVadis Gold rating for the company’s sustainability management and performance for the fourth consecutive year. Compared with the results from the previous year, progress was especially made in sustainable procurement. EcoVadis is a globally recognized business sustainability rating provider. The Corporate Social Responsibility assessment criteria include four themes; environment, labor practices, sustainable procurement and fair business practices. The EcoVadis method is based on internationally adopted principles for sustainability reporting, such as the Global Reporting Initiative, United Nations Global Compact and ISO 26000, and is audited by independent sustainability experts.

Amazon announced The Climate Pledge Fund to support the development of sustainable technologies and services that will enable Amazon and other companies to meet The Climate Pledge—a commitment to be net zero carbon by 2040. This dedicated venture investment program—with an initial $2 billion in funding—will back visionary companies whose products and services will facilitate the transition to a zero carbon economy. Last year, Amazon and Global Optimism co-founded The Climate Pledge, a commitment to reach the Paris Agreement ten years early and be net zero carbon by 2040. Verizon, Reckitt Benckiser (RB), and Infosys recently joined the pledge—sending an important signal to the market that there will be rapid growth in demand for products and services that help reduce carbon emissions. Amazon’s new Climate Pledge Fund will accelerate investment in innovations for the zero carbon economy of the future.

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI) is pleased to announce that 139 printers have certified to the SFI Chain-of-Custody Standard. This is the largest SFI group certification of any industry to the standard. The group includes printers from coast to coast in major cities and markets in the U.S. This certification allows a greater number of printers to be able to use the SFI on-product label. SFI on‑product labels help customers and consumers make sustainable choices. The regional affiliated organizations led the group certification through its Regional Affiliate Certificate Group (RACG) program.

While our minds and hearts are at the moment very much focused on managing the COVID-19 crisis and the economic recovery we must not lose sight of our long-term sustainability ambitions. We must continue to strive towards a greener economy and invest in the development of forward-looking technologies that help bring about a circular, carbon-free economy. To get there, we must start partnering across the value chain, designing for circularity while ensuring an effective use of renewable resources and energy. Only together we can deliver innovation for next generations that continue to protect the health and safety of consumers but also of the planet, including sustainable food production and biodiversity. These are all building blocks of the EU Green Deal — and they should also guide our green recovery. To ensure this, we must also secure that European regulation provides a clear and predictable framework to enable us to move in this direction together. Otherwise it may not encourage businesses to invest in the next generation of environmental innovation. And we will lack viable solutions to reach our goals.

In the development of a truly sustainable product, fragrance producer ÖPSO takes an extra step forward. The company’s home fragrances are entirely PEFC-certified, from the ingredients to the packaging. ÖPSO Marketing Manager Jens Neumann explains what makes the product unique. What will be the next big innovation in ambience? This has been the big question since the beginning of this project in 2017. To help us solve it, we involved consumers and fragrance experts in the development process. The main outcome was that all air fresheners are artificial because they are based on petrol. For more than 18 months we worked together with perfumers, consumers and creatives in the development of this innovation, which we believe will be a breakthrough in the world of air freshening. To this end we have created ÖPSO, the first home fragrances made from natural tree resin.

AptarGroup, Inc. released its 2019 Corporate Sustainability Report. The 2019 Sustainability Report highlights Aptar’s extensive sustainability initiatives that have been implemented across its global operations. As in previous reports, Aptar summarizes several milestones measured and achieved in three key areas of people, planet and product. In 2019, Aptar signed the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Global Commitment, joining forces with other businesses and governments committed to changing how plastic is produced, used and reused. Since the last report, Aptar also formalized its Science Based Targets, pledged its support to the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and joined the United Nations Global Compact initiative. Aptar is committed to increasing the usage of post-consumer recycled resin (PCR) and researching additional opportunities for more sustainable resins and the recyclability of its products. Aptar’s aspirations, safety programs, societal impact of products and community outreach initiatives are also featured in the report.

Fortum and Metsä Group join forces with Business Finland to create a world-class R&D programme with pulp fibre from renewable and sustainable sources as its node. The 4-year joint R&D programme, called ExpandFibre, aims to develop ground-breaking technologies and smart business concepts that are required to convert straw and wood pulp fibre into novel bioproducts, such as textile fibres. The R&D programme has been granted EUR 20 million from Business Finland. ExpandFibre will be part of a global innovation ecosystem. The ExpandFibre partners Fortum and Metsä Group want to encourage members of the ecosystem to significantly accelerate their efforts within the circular bioeconomy. Members of the ecosystem can apply for financing from Business Finland or from the EU.

The potential consequences of misleading marketing claims – from negative public relations and customer dissatisfaction to legal action and financial penalties – make rigorous factual and legal scrutiny of product and service claims a fundamental step in today’s corporate marketing process. So why do so many otherwise diligent companies skip this step and shoot from the hip when it comes to making environmental claims about the use of print and paper? In part, the answer lies in the fact that the “go paperless, save trees” mantra has been repeated so often over the years that it is accepted as gospel by many corporate gatekeepers. If paper comes from trees and we use less paper, we save trees and protect our forests, the reasoning goes. And since using less paper is good for the environment, the electronic bills, statements and other customer communications that replace it must be a better environmental choice, right? Wrong. But lots of big-name North American companies are making this unsubstantiated leap as they encourage their customers to switch from paper to electronic communications, ironically sidestepping best practices for environmental marketing under the banner of going green.

Malaysia-based company Teo Seng Paper Products stamped a mark in the local paper industry when it recently became the first company in the country to obtain PEFC chain of custody certification for its eco-friendly egg trays. The PEFC certificate enables Teo Seng Paper Products to use the PEFC label on its egg trays as a mark of its compliance to the sustainability requirements of the PEFC Chain of Custody standard. Edan Na, product development executive at Teo Seng Paper Products said the company had been producing sturdy egg trays made of recycled newspapers and corrugated cartons since 1995, in line with its vision to produce sustainable products for the industry. At present, the company uses 400 tonnes of recycled paper to produce 6.3 million units of egg trays every month, mainly for local consumption.

Forest certification is one of the few tools that can directly connect the consumer to the forest. It enables each of us to make a difference to the world’s forests through buying certified products. We are reaching out to consumers to show that forest certification is about so much more than only trees – and online campaigns are an increasingly important aspect of this work. In the past year, we have been reaching out to, interacting with, and hearing from people around the world through a number of online communication campaigns. The campaign to our 20th anniversary kicked off last July. After a soft launch at the beginning of 2019, the “year of celebration” began the day after PEFC’s anniversary on 30 June. It was on this day back in 1999 when European small-forest owners came together to create PEFC – an international forest certification system that had their needs at heart.

Tetra Pak reconfirms its strategic priority in driving the sustainability transformation by setting an ambition for net zero emissions across the value chain by 2050, supporting this with an intermediate 2030 target of net zero carbon emissions across its own operations. The company will also set emissions reduction targets in line with 1.5°C according to the Science Based Targets (SBT) initiative across scopes 1, 2 and 3. Tetra Pak was founded on the idea that a package should save more than it costs, with sustainability always at the core of how the company operates as a business. Since 1999, the company has been collecting data on energy use and greenhouse gas emissions from across the organisation on an annual basis, with its GHG accounts audited by an independent third party since 2013.

SCA is setting aside trial sites in the Sörgraninge conservation park for continuous cover forestry (CCF). The trial sites are part of a collaboration between SCA and the Swedish Forest Agency and will be used for training and follow-up to provide more knowledge of CCF methods. Continuous cover forestry is a method of harvesting that seeks to avoid clearfelling. SCA applies continuous cover forestry (CCF) methods on some of its forest land where there are special reasons for not carrying out regular harvesting operations. One example is sites that require alternative interventions in order to preserve environmental or cultural heritage values, or to promote recreation and reindeer husbandry. CCF methods includes group selection, where groups of trees are harvested to create gaps for new forest stands, or making shelters of trees where larger trees are retained to promote regeneration.

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised questions about the lifespan of the virus on a variety of surfaces, including paper and paper-based packaging products. Some service providers are capitalizing on consumer uncertainty by suggesting or requiring that their customers go paperless for safety reasons. Such a change is not welcomed by many and can be especially challenging for those who have difficulty using electronic technologies or who simply need paper communications, including older adults, people with disabilities, low-income earners and those with no home internet or computers. As information is developed in this rapidly evolving environment, Keep Me Posted North America, a key Two Sides campaign, has compiled the latest available science and guidance related to COVID-19 and the safe use of paper products. click read more below to download fact sheet.

Amcor has joined the World Wildlife Fund-led activation hub, ReSource: Plastic, a global consortium of companies and organizations collaborating to keep waste out of the environment. Launched last year, ReSource aims to help accelerate large-scale plastic commitments by organizations. By 2030, Resource has a target to prevent at least 50 million metric tons of plastic waste from entering nature. ReSource welcomed Amcor to the organization alongside Colgate-Palmolive and Kimberly-Clark. “Amcor is leading the way on packaging innovation, but new products and technologies alone won’t be enough to meet our sustainability ambitions and to solve the global waste issue. Keeping waste out of the environment will require not only the right package design but also efficient collection and waste management along with active consumer participation,” said Amcor CEO Ron Delia.

The FTSE100 sustainable packaging leader has today announced the appointment of Wouter van Tol as Head of Sustainability and Government Affairs. Reporting to Greg Dawson, Director of Corporate Affairs, van Tol will spearhead sustainability and public affairs across the DS Smith Group including its packaging, paper and recycling divisions. Wouter van Tol joins DS Smith after three years as Global Head of Corporate Responsibility at food packaging company Huhtamaki, where he was responsible for developing and delivering its Packaging for Good sustainability strategy. An industry heavyweight with over two decades of experience, van Tol previously held senior positions in Procter & Gamble, Nestlé and Samsung.

As of July 2020, achieving a key aspect of our original goal years in advance, Walmart is moving to source its U.S. stores Great Value canned tuna as either Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)-certified or, based on supplier reports, from a time-bound Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) actively working toward certification. The MSC Fisheries Standard has three core principles every fishery must meet: sustainable fish stocks, minimal environmental impact and effective fisheries management. “With a clear signal from leadership, our team has invested in research to help us better understand the value chain of tuna and ask the question, ‘What’s the right way to do this?’” said Sean Reber, who leads Walmart’s global sourcing team on direct import programs for packaged food.

An RFID tag is like a small price tag that contains a lot of information on the pulp unit. The tag makes it possible to monitor the data of a pulp batch in real time. ​The RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tracking system is based on a small sticker that contains an electronic tag. A unique RFID tag is attached to every Metsä Fibre pulp unit. The RFID tag contains a microchip that stores the pulp batch number and to which the batch data is assigned. The tracking tag can store more information than a barcode. With the RFID tracking method, the quantity, technical properties and latest location of a pulp delivery can be verified in real time.

If there is something that the last few lockdown months have taught many of us, is that we need to make 'Time for Nature’. We have marvelled as the planet has taken a breather along with her inhabitants and has rejuvenated herself, as we have rediscovered the abundance that she has to offer. It is why it is so apt that it is the theme for this year’s World Environment Day, which happens on Friday 05 June 2020. ‘Time for Nature’ focuses on the role nature plays in providing the essential infrastructure that supports life on Earth and human development. This focus is particularly important to Sappi, which has unlocking the value of woodfibre from it forests, at the core of its sustainable business strategy. Biodiversity is key to the healthy functioning of the forests and plantations from which we source woodfibre – they would not be productive without biotic processes taking place, making World Environment Day particularly relevant to us.

Sustainable consumption is on the rise. A Nielsen study found that 73% of global consumers say they would change their consumption habits to reduce their environment impact. This means it has never been more important to use sustainable materials, to know that your products come from sustainable sources and to prove that to your customers. Increasing the use of sustainable, certified forest-based packaging has huge potential to not only help companies meet sustainability targets, but also to have a positive impact on the world’s forests and forest communities. Join our PEFC Webinar: Creating impact through responsibly sourced packaging and learn more about PEFC certification and the advantages for your business and beyond! The webinar is free to attend and takes place 23 June at 11:00-11:50 CEST. Register for the webinar! https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Wq6Hlnz-QdKZTlFPORFNxQ

Download the fact-sheet at: https://twosides.info/documents/factsheets/Coronavirus-(SARS-COV-2)-Surface-Stability.pdf . The world has altered very quickly over the past few months. Almost every aspect of daily life has been completely changed, from business and politics to culture and society, and it’s going to be a while until anything gets back to normal. At a time when there’s intense focus on the spread of Covid-19 and ways in which that spread can be reduced, there’s been a lot of attention on different surfaces and how those surfaces can retain and potentially spread the virus. Since paper and card are very physical mediums, they have come under the spotlight, with concerns expressed about whether people can catch coronavirus simply by touching. So we have researched the facts relating to Covid-19 transmission through paper/cardboard surfaces. click read more for additional insight

Our Plymouth Mill has taken another step toward a more sustainable future thanks to the success of a recent resource conservation project. Just one year after the installation of a cooling tower and new heat exchangers, the mill’s closed-loop system for heating process water has exceeded expectations by dramatically reducing daily water consumption and fuel costs. Last May, the team installed a cooling tower and two large heat exchangers to reclaim waste heat from the mill and use it to reduce steam consumption. While the resource conservation project was originally expected to eliminate the use of about 11 million gallons of river water per day, Operations Manager David Council says the system is performing better than expected, saving approximately 18 million gallons of water per day. Before the team installed the new equipment, the mill used water from the nearby Roanoke River to cool mill processes. The mill returned the water to the river in the same condition, only slightly warmer. With the addition of the cooling tower and heat exchangers, the mill now has a closed-loop system that reclaims heat from the mill’s evaporation equipment and transfers it to process water. The reclaimed heat reduces the mill’s steam load, which means it burns less fuel in the boilers to make steam.

"As far as recyclability is concerned, the plastic bottle is probably slightly better because it is likely only made from one plastic, and so is easier to recycle than a multilayer material like a beverage carton," says Rolf Buschmann, waste and resource expert with the German environmental organization BUND, who worked on the group's 2019 Plastic Atlas. He explains that only the paper part of the drink carton would be recycled — everything else, including the plastic coating or layer or aluminum foil, would be incinerated as residual waste. "In recent years there's been a trend toward so-called multilayer packaging, which is extremely light and thin. It saves material as well as CO2 emissions during transport, but can't be recycled," Christiani says. Because it is not possible to melt the different plastics together, or — at least for now — to separate the individual films from one another at recycling plants. A 2017 cyclos-HTP study into the recyclability of conventional packaging waste concluded that a third of it was not recyclable, and only 40% of the remaining two-thirds was made into plastic recyclate. The rest was used as fuel — in other words it was incinerated. click read more below for more of the story

*61% of consumers expect the brands they buy from to have clear sustainability practices *Customer experience / satisfaction is the leading metric businesses (58%) use to measure return on investment from sustainability practices *Two-thirds of UK businesses struggle to measure impact of their sustainability strategies *Sustainability to remain a priority for businesses in post Covid-19 era *A new survey by packaging leader Smurfit Kappa has provided insights into how Conscious Consumerism is continuing to drive the need for UK organisations to embed sustainability into business operations. With a growing demand for higher transparency of companies’ sustainability practices amongst a new generation of consumers, the survey also highlights how two thirds of UK businesses struggled to measure the bottom-line impact of their sustainability strategies.

Many brands and retailers could reduce the climate impact of their packaging up to 50 percent and avoid thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide being emitted to air. The results is based on a large number of life cycle assessments performed by BillerudKorsnäs in a new tool that evaluates the environmental impact of different packaging solutions. The digital tool has received a warm welcome by customers and brand owners in their pursuit of reducing carbon emissions. Global demand for packaging is rising with sustainability as a strong driver, which means future packaging will need to be designed so that it does not impact our climate. The recently introduced digital tool contains an extensive database on different packaging materials, including data from BillerudKorsnäs’ own production. By selecting a number of parameters related to the packaging, such as material, size, production location, transport, and disposal method, it will show the total life cycle impact for carbon dioxide emissions and water consumption. At BillerudKorsnäs, the tool is mainly used to improve supply chain efficiency and environmental performance for customers with production in Asia. Customers can then use the information in their environmental communication and sustainability reporting.

UPM has newly adopted the target of doubling the amount of broadleaved trees growing in company-owned forests in Finland. In the light of current research data, increasing the proportion of broadleaved trees improves the forest’s growth and yield as well as its species diversity and resistance to climate change. UPM plans to increase the proportion of broadleaved trees to one fifth of all tree species growing in habitats that are suitable for birch. The dominant tree species growing in Finnish forests are typically pine and spruce. The decision to increase broadleaved trees is an important and timely move. “It makes sense from every angle. It will improve our yield capacity and also safeguard biodiversity. It will additionally ensure that our forests stay healthy and better equipped to resist the altered conditions caused by climate change. In the multi-purpose forestry sector, we strongly rely on native tree species,” says Sauli Brander, SVP, UPM Forest.

Global sustainable food packaging leader Huhtamaki and international charity WasteAid have announced a €900,000 (£800,000) partnership to drive community-level circular economy innovation in Vietnam, India and South Africa for a two-year period. To mark its 100-year anniversary, Huhtamaki is donating €3 million to global sustainability initiatives with a local impact - acting today, educating for tomorrow and funding innovation for the future, making a difference where it matters most to help address global sustainability challenges and build circular economy initiatives. The Huhtamaki funded project will provide financial support to WasteAid to deliver education and training on waste management and circular systems. It will enable WasteAid to work with key stakeholders in Johannesburg (South Africa), Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) and Guwahati (Assam, India) to fast-track and amplify local solutions that create value and reduce waste and pollution, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Smurfit Kappa is taking another step forward in its sustainability journey by signing a commitment to align its CO2 target with the Science Based Target (SBT) initiative. The move follows on from the packaging leader recently revealing in its 2019 Sustainable Development Report that it has reduced its fossil CO2 emission intensity by almost a third (32.9%) since 2005. The SBT is a collaboration between the UN Global Compact, WWF, CDP and World Resources Institute (WRI). The initiative champions science-based target setting as a powerful way to boost companies’ competitive advantage in the transition to a low-carbon economy and focuses in particular on validating their CO2 reduction targets in line with the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

The Covid-19 pandemic may have changed working habits and the way we interact with others, but the climate emergency has remained constant even as the world goes into lockdown. At a time of crisis, it can be easy to forget the net-zero pledges that companies and countries across the world have committed to over the past few years, but they still stand, reminding us that reducing our impact on the environment is more important than ever. One way of doing so is through the circular economy, with one of its key pillars to keep materials in use for as long as possible, thereby reducing the need for virgin materials and, ultimately, limiting the excessive consumption of resources.

Forest owners and companies still regularly burn parts of the forests they own. Far from being dangerous, experts say this is necessary for the healthy growth of trees. Prescribed burning of forests is a widely accepted and traditional tool for forest management across the world, including the US and UK. It is well planned, has pre-defined limits and a definite purpose. In many parts of the world it is also used as a tool to contain out of control wildfires, prevent forest fires, revitalise natural habitats and preserve biodiversity. The case of the False darkling beetle in Finland is proof that there is merit in this approach.

PEFC and the Thailand Forestry Certification Council (TFCC), our national member for Thailand, have launched a group certification project to support smallholders producing rubber in Thailand. Presented in the Trang province in Thailand in March, the project supports the Klongprang Cooperative in implementing group certification for 1000 hectares of forest, managed by small-scale rubber growers. A wide range of stakeholders from the industry is participating in this effort, providing not only technical and financial support but also market information and demand for the certified products. The pilot project will build a group model and supporting mechanisms to enable more smallholders to achieve TFCC/PEFC certification in the upcoming years.

Metsä Board, the leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and part of Metsä Group, has started a rapids fishery restoration project together with WWF Finland and the local Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment. Construction work at Mämmenkoski, located in Äänekoski in Central Finland, began in early May and will take a month to complete. The aim of the restoration is to make it possible for fish to naturally migrate from Lake Kuhnamo to Lake Ala-Keitele. In addition, it is hoped that it will re-establish the possibility of natural fry production of lake trout in the rapids. The restoration project will open two existing dams to remove obstacles from the fish migration route. The riverbed will be restored into a natural migration route and spawning areas will be formed to enable natural fry production of the trout. The project has been developed in cooperation with the local fishery community.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) today announced 66.2 percent of paper consumed in the United States was recovered for recycling in 2019. Over the last decade, the U.S. paper industry achieved a consistently high recycling rate, meeting or exceeding 63 percent since 2009 — a rate that’s nearly doubled since 1990, when the industry first set a paper recycling goal. The recycling rate for old corrugated containers (OCC) in 2019 was 92.0 percent, and the three-year average OCC recycling rate is 92.3 percent. “Paper recycling continues to be an environmental success story,” said AF&PA President and CEO Heidi Brock. “More than twice as much paper is recycled than is sent to landfills, saving an average of 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space for each ton of paper recycled. This is a testament to consumer behavior and an industry commitment to paper recycling. AF&PA members continue to invest in manufacturing infrastructure that will allow us to recycle even more paper in the years ahead.”

PEFC provides a space for people to come together to jointly determine how our forests should be managed. “We all love forests in one way or the other, and we all wish to be involved with them and feel ownership of them. There is a kind of moral ownership of forests by everyone in society,” Ben explains. “That is why it's important to get everyone involved in a multi-stakeholder process in determining how a forest is managed.” “By having everyone involved, it allows all of us to understand better the different needs of different stakeholders and to try and find the correct balance to meet all of those needs, in a way that allows those forests to be managed sustainably and to be supported by all of us.”

Smurfit Kappa is making significant progress in reducing its relative CO2 emissions according to its 13th annual Sustainable Development Report (SDR) which was published today. The leading provider of paper-based packaging, Smurfit Kappa reported a 32.9% reduction in fossil CO2 emission intensity between 2005 and 2019. While this is an impressive achievement, the company’s current target is even more ambitious as it seeks to reduce relative CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030, in comparison to the 2005 baseline. In addition to seeking SBT validation*, Smurfit Kappa is also looking to build on more than a decade of providing full CO2 disclosures by supporting the Taskforce for Climate-related Financial Disclosures, a global body which develops climate-related financial risk disclosures which are used to provide information for investors, lenders and insurers.

This month’s Member Spotlight features Rolland Enterprises Inc. A leading North American producer of uncoated papers, Rolland manufactures papers with up to 100% post-consumer content. With operations in Quebec and Wisconsin, the company’s operations include a paper mill and converting facility, as well as two state-of-the-art facilities that produce premium recycled pulp. Founded in 1882, Rolland’s enduring commitment to quality, innovation and sustainable manufacturing include sustainable sourcing, energy efficiency, water conservation, wastewater treatment technology, recycling of process byproducts and a continuing focus on further reducing its environmental footprint. Rolland uses the life cycle assessment (LCA) process to guide its sustainability improvement objectives and makes the results of its LCAs public, confirming the company’s environmental stewardship to its many stakeholders. For example, an LCA identified a gap in the company’s water consumption which enabled it to improve its water recycling systems. Today, Rolland’s paper mill has a closed-loop system that uses six times less water and recycles the water 30 times. One of the company’s most successful environmental innovations is the use of 93% renewable biogas energy to manufacture products at its paper mill — the only mill in North America to use primarily biogas for energy. An eight-mile-long pipeline feeds the mill with purified methane gas captured at a nearby landfill. This reduces Rolland’s annual CO2 footprint by 70,000 tons or the equivalent of taking 23,400 compact cars off the road for one year.