Graphic Packaging Awarded Smartwood Certification

As consumers become increasingly aware of environmental issues, Graphic Packaging says it’s responding with materials that both protect products and use the earth's resources wisely.

Now initiatives by the company's South American division in Brazil are being recognized with certification under one of the packaging industry's most prestigious "green" programs -- SmartWood accreditation from the Rain Forest Alliance and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).

"This accreditation is new for our South American division, but the culture of sustainability is not new for Graphic Packaging - we have long had in place a comprehensive environmental program that includes achieving appropriate certification around the world for our products and our procedures," said Andrew Johnson, Director of Business Development and Sustainability. "We manage our business every day according to the highest standards of responsible environmental policy, always carefully balancing the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of sustainability."

For example, earlier this year Graphic Packing joined other leading packaging firms in achieving fiber sourcing certification by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI, Inc.) at all of its converting facilities. The company achieved certification for all of its virgin kraft mills several years ago.

Graphic Packaging says it has in place a comprehensive company-wide sustainability program which carefully addresses improving water and energy usage, plus monitoring of the firm's carbon footprint. This is said to include using best production practices at all manufacturing facilities to minimize solid and liquid waste, then to capture, segregate, and recycle those wastes which are generated.

"Now under the SmartWood certification program, our South American operations in Brazil will use only paperboard materials that have been third-party certified as being eco-friendly," emphasized Tarcisio Santoro, Director of Operations for Graphic Packaging's South American Operations.

"There is a strict chain of custody which we must follow and confirm during the conversion process so we don't contaminate either the raw stock or the environment. The result is that our packaging starts natural and stays natural - and the environment is the beneficiary."

Currently, just 10% of the world's forests are part of managed and certified programs, according to Johnson, so participation in the SmartWood initiative continues and enhances Graphic Packaging's leadership in using natural resources responsibly and at a rate that they can be replenished naturally.

"We're able to serve our customers with reliable fiber products from managed forests and in the process support those customers with their own environmental commitment programs," added Johnson.

"More and more consumers are shopping for goods that are environmentally-sensitive, which means our food, beverage, and consumer product customers want greener packaging -- and we're responding with the creativity and innovation for which Graphic Packaging is historically known."

Source: Graphic Packaging