The tissue industry was long considered an enemy of the environment: yet over the last few years this view has been strongly challenged. Nowadays, tissue means all-round sustainability, from environmental protection to production processes, not to mention recycling.
It is not by chance that the Italian tissue industry’s Green New Deal started in Lucca a few months ago: its ten principles incorporate, enhance, and safeguard every facet of the tissue lifecycle.
Green products are now increasing their presence in consumers’ shopping carts around the world. Customer purchase habits have been static for many years: the preference for green products has tended to be just a façade – a good intention that did not translate into an actual purchase. We are now living in a new era, and high-earners are not the only ones opting for environmentally friendly purchases: customers from less privileged income groups also tend to actively buy more products from companies that address climate change. Regulations have been widely enforced to fight so-called green washing, a form of marketing that conveys misleading information about the environmental credentials of a company’s products. Green washing is becoming increasingly risky, because a growing section of the population has the knowledge to expose such deceit.
A study promoted by the Deutsche Bank Research Center confirms that: “About a third of people have stopped buying a product from a company they “really liked” after seeing bad environmental press about that company”.
Other significant data emerge from the same study:
At first there was recycled paper; then production processes were refined; packaging and bleaching became kinder to the environment; lastly, the use of sustainable raw materials became non-negotiable. The Green Deal has been growing for decades in tissue production: nowadays, it involves not only those directly involved in tissue, but also the public sector, charities, and – needless to say – all of us who use and consume tissue products, because the choices people make are what ultimately drive the market.
Ever sensitive to this topic, largely out of a sense of responsibility, the tissue industry has developed engineering, technological and energy solutions to make tissue paper increasingly sustainable. It is worth remembering that paper is green by choice, but also clean in action: not surprisingly, a study reviewing 12 research articles published in 2012 concluded: “From a hygiene viewpoint, paper towels are superior to electric air dryers”.
Sustainability is one of the 17 goals of the UN 2030 Agenda, “a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity”, endorsed in September 2015 by the 193 Member States. Even better, sustainability can be regarded as a comprehensive asset: it is a key factor in responsible consumer choices and, likewise, in national and international policies worldwide.
Let’s try and understand, though, how sustainability can be effectively defined. A good place to start is this description by Daniel Kalt, UBS Chief Economist: “Sustainable actions should preserve resources and opportunities for future generations. We should aim to leave our children a planet where it is worthwhile living, a planet that can guarantee them the same welfare we claim for ourselves”. Using this vision as a starting point, we strive every day to build a better world. Our goal? Paper is the new green!