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Worldwide commitment on wood traceability Chief executives of the world’s three leading beverage carton manufacturers have announced details of a unilateral commitment they are making to help improve forest governance globally. The voluntary initiative on wood traceability, launched by companies representing 80% of the sector’s worldwide turnover, was supported by European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas and Commission Vice-President Günter Verheugen. The executives also met MEP Lena Ek and MEPs active in climate change and forest governance, all offering their support for the initiative. The companies taking the initiative are Tetra Pak, SIG Combibloc and Elopak, all members of the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE). They have committed to a system to ensure within 10 years all wood fibres used in beverage cartons can be traced back to legal and acceptable sources in their forest of origin. The industry’s requirements of paperboard are estimated at 2 millions tonnes annually. Good business, good policy “Our Commitment is as much about good business as good policy”, comments Dennis Jönsson, Tetra Pak’s CEO. “With beverage cartons made of some 75% from wood fibre, a naturally renewable resource, we need to secure long-term supplies. We have a vested interest in responsible management of the forests where our products are ultimately sourced”, he says. “What is important”, according to Rolf-Dieter Rademacher, CEO of SIG “is that our commitment not only covers European suppliers, but that it applies to all our board suppliers worldwide. By this, we will be able to show how the value chain of an entire sector can work together to meet important policy goals and broader goals of society”, he says. Another priority is to ensure that all players in the sector follow the lead given by ACE member companies. “We need a level playing field and fair competition”, says Niels Petter Wright, Elopak’s CEO. “Certified traceability systems mean promoting responsible forestry practices in the world’s most vulnerable regions”, he stresses. Certified wood traceability systems and climate change In addition, underlines Mr. Jönsson, “managing forests responsibly will enhance their natural mitigating effect on climate change and global warming. An important part of responsible forest management is independently certified wood traceability”. Key to the credibility of the system is the independence of the certification using chain-of-custody standards. These standards are those set by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes (PEFC), or equivalent schemes. For further details on the Commitment, and its full text, go to www.beveragecarton.eu  Download Media Release 070705 (PDF, 69kB)  Download Image (JPG, 1411kB) For contacts: Ms. Erika Mink President of ACE Tel: +32 478 99 23 00 email: secretariat@beveragecarton.eu 
Chief executives of the world’s three leading beverage carton manufacturers, Niels-Petter Wright, CEO of Elopak (left), Rolf-Dieter Rademacher, CEO of SIG (2nd from left) and Dennis Jönsson, CEO of Tetra Pak (right) informed in Brussels about their joint worldwide commitment on wood traceability. They also met with Lena Ek, Member of the European Parliament (2nd from right). News overview >> |
