P&G moves forward on pulp

How it will eventually replace the polypropylene and other petrochemical materials employed in the nonwovens of its Pampers diapers and related products remains a mystery.

Nevertheless, Procter & Gamble continues to move remorselessly towards its goal of all products and packaging eventually being made from 100% sustainably sourced renewable or recycled materials.

The company has just announced new fibre sourcing goals for the pulp it purchases for its tissue-towel, baby care and feminine hygiene brands.

Developed in collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the goals are published in P&G’s 2012 Sustainability Report today (November 12th) and commit that by 2015:

All of the pulp used in P&G’s tissue-towel, baby care and feminine hygiene products will be third-party certified under one of the following five certification programs used in different parts of the world to promote responsible forestry:
•    Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which P&G will continue to preference.
•    Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Systems (PEFC).
•    Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).
•    Brazilian National Forestry Certification Scheme (CERFLOR).
•    Canada’s National Standard for Sustainable Forest Management (CSA-SFM).

At least 40% of the pulp used in P&G’s tissue-towel products will be Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified.

“We believe that partnering is essential to deliver our long-term sustainability vision,” said Len Sauers, vice president of global sustainability at P&G. “WWF is an invaluable partner, since it has challenged us and collaborated to work through the complexities of achieving third party-certification for our pulp. We are very proud of this commitment, and we are confident we have the plans in place to deliver the goals by 2015.”

“While we don’t own or manage forests, we recognize the responsibility and opportunity P&G has to use our pulp procurement decisions to promote responsible management of the world’s forest resources,” added Stefano Zenezini, vice-president of product supply.

In 2006, P&G began requiring certification from all suppliers managing forests. In 2008, P&G joined WWF’s Global Forest and Trade Network programme, which assists companies with sourcing more of their wood and paper products from responsibly managed forests. As part of this WWF collaboration, P&G has engaged more closely with suppliers to encourage FSC certification, and established a baseline from which to set these targets.

“We applaud P&G’s commitment to responsible forestry, and its decision to publicize these robust goals around FSC certification,” said Linda Walker, WWF’s GFTN-NA programme manager. “With increasing pressure on the world’s natural forest to meet the growing global demand for wood and agricultural products, P&G’s actions serve as an example that we would like to see from many more companies.”