Essity Responds to Greenpeace Report

In response to a published Greenpeace report, Essity wishes to outline its work to promote sustainable forestry.

Essity’s use of wood fiber comprises both recovered fiber (collected recycled fiber) and fresh fiber. All fresh wood fiber in our products is to be FSC® or PEFC™ certified, or fulfill the FSC’s standard for controlled wood.

The Forest Stewardship Council, an independent, international certification organization, promotes the environmentally friendly, socially responsible and economically viable management of the world’s forests. Essity prioritizes the FSC® certification system, and encourages all suppliers to work toward certification. It views this as an important tool to spread sustainable forestry practices across the globe.

In 2016, 6.5 million tons of fresh fiber was delivered to Essity in the form of wood, pulp, packaging, mother reels and third-party supplied articles. All of the fiber was certified or controlled which means that its suppliers uphold and safeguard principles on biodiversity and forest conservation. Essity requires pulp suppliers to guarantee that they have robust systems and documented procedures in place to ensure traceability and compliance throughout the supply chain.

Discussions are currently ongoing in the FSC organization to determine how Intact Forest Landscapes are to be included in the certification work. "We fully support this work and look forward to the presentation of clear guidelines from the world’s most respected forest certification organization, the FSC," the statement read.

Essity is engaged in dialog with Greenpeace regarding developments of responsible forestry and the integration of Intact Forest Landscapes into the FSC.