Beverage carton industry makes ‘significant progress’ towards full FSC traceability
23 November 2012
The proportion of wood fibre, either FSC-certified or originating from FSC-controlled sources, that was purchased by producers in the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment group rose to 85% in 2011 compared to 78% in 2010, ACE has announced.
ACE members Tetra Pak, Elopak and SIG Combibloc, in conjunction with fellow group members Stora Enso and Korsnäs – the leading European paperboard suppliers for the beverage carton industry – say they are on track to meet their commitment to source 100% wood fibre that is traceable to legal and acceptable sources by 2015.
“Traceability is one of our industry’s most important strategic means to combat illegal logging,” says ACE director general Katarina Molin.
Adding that it is also an objective of the new European Union Timber Regulation, Molin says: “Equally important is to avoid using socially and environmentally unacceptable sources of wood.
“With beverage cartons made on average of 75% of this natural renewable resource, ACE members have a vested interest in the responsible management of forests, where the raw materials for their products are sourced.”
Of the 54 converting plants owned by ACE beverage carton producers worldwide, 40 are FSC chain of custody certified, representing an increase of 11% compared to 2010, with the total number of plants having increased in the same period.
The figures arise from the fifth annual report by Proforest – an independent verifier of natural resource management – on the Chain of Custody commitment (CoC) made by the three companies in 2007.
ACE expects that the percentage of CoC certified plants will further increase in 2012. The group has confirmed that one of the ACE converting members has already fully met the ACE commitments for both CoC certification of converting plants and sustainable sourcing of wood fibres.
