The paper industry is heavily regulated and rightfully so.
Deforestation and pollution are issues that have a detrimental impact on the world that we all inhabit. As a result of these problems, several non-profit organisations were created to promote responsible management of the paper resources around the world.
The main bodies include the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC, started in 1993) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC, started in 1999). Both are widely known for their contribution towards sustainable forest management.
The small fish in this very global pond is the EU Ecolabel. Unlike the two leaders in the field, Ecolabel monitors the entire life-cycle of the product from the extraction of raw material through to production, use and disposal.
Founded in 1992 and covering all of the EU as well as Norway and Iceland, the purpose of Ecolabel is to encourage a more sustainable approach to the entire product process and not just the forests that the wood fibres originate from.
This is what sets Ecolabel accreditation apart from FSC and PEFC; the entire journey of the product is checked to ensure that no part of the chain is causing undue harm to the environment. The entire process from factory to end user contributes to minimising waste, pollution and natural resource depletion.
In real terms, the Ecolabel paper is often overlooked by customers who know of the other bodies but this should not be the case. In fact, the Ecolabel status is superior to its rivals in its thorough review of the production, distribution and packaging practices of the manufacturer.
We stock Envirocopy which is made in Portugal and has the Ecolabel accreditation to its name. It is a high performance copy paper made from managed forests, using 70% of energy from renewable sources. It’s environmentally friendly, made from 100% sustainable Eucalyptus Globulus fibre, and gives high quality sheet formation, guaranteed consistent printing and a high white shade. We also get the paper direct from the mill so the carbon footprint is low as well as the cost.
To find out more about the Ecolabel products we sell, please get in touch and we can answer any questions you may have.