The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and The World Resources Institute published a new Sustainable Procurement Guide for Wood and Paper-Based Products. This is the most recent upgrade to the guide since the original was released in 2008. The guide deals with a variety of issues including sustainable sourcing, social issues, the environment and legal issues.
Uta Maria Jungermann, a forest solutions group manager, says, “For a company sourcing wood-based products, knowing their supply chains increases transparency and reduces risks.” The guide will help procurement staff adopt policies that make efficient use of wood-based products to avoid waste and also cut costs in the process.
Jungermann suggests that it makes sense to source wood-based products which originate from responsibly managed forests, such as those overseen by the PEFC. She continues, “PEFC’s sustainable forest management standard, demonstrates an organisation’s support for well-managed forests and helps grow markets for certified forest products. The new version was prompted by the growing movement from big brand-owning companies towards deforestation-free products and we wanted to help supply chains address this.”
The WBCSD aims to unite the global business community so that an increasing amount of environmentally friendly practices are adopted. Its reach currently extends to 50 countries and that number is increasing on a yearly basis. Hopefully, the creation of this guide helps to ensure that sustainable paper policies will be adopted by the biggest paper using companies in the world.
