A new online report by World Wildlife Fund International (WWF) analyzed the environmental practices of the five largest European tissue manufacturers: Kimberly-Clark, Georgia Pacific, Metsa Tissue, Proctor & Gamble, and SCA. Looking at three main criteria: 1. Responsible Purchasing; 2. Efficiency of Use of Fiber Inputs; 3. Clean Production, each company's progress in these areas was ranked in percentage points.
When all percentages were totaled, Kimberly-Clark, came out in last place. In particular, Kimberly-Clark ranked very low in the areas of responsible fiber sourcing, recycling and efficient use of fiber, clean production, including a 0% mark in transparency/comparability of clean production. No other company scored a 0% in any of the categories.
Commenting on the release of the report, Duncan Pollard, Head of WWF's European Forest Programme said: "Everyday about 270,000 trees are effectively flushed down the toilet or end up as garbage around the world. Such a use of the forests is both wasteful and unnecessary. Manufacturers must use more recycled fibres in their tissue products, as this means fewer trees will be cut down."
In comparison to the other companies, Kimberly-Clark did not receive any green marks in any area of the survey. Green marks indicate a company is taking positive and substantial steps to lessen its impact on the environment. Yet Kimberly-Clark continues to claim to be an environmental leader and boasts about its inclusion in the 2006 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index. But, when one lifts the thin veil of tissue paper covering the company's environmental performance, the ugly truth about their role in forest destruction, their limited use of recycled paper, and their lack of willingness to increase recycled content are all clearly revealed.
The report also warns that unsustainable timber harvesting, illegal logging and land right conflicts still exist in many of the countries from where the virgin fibres are sourced.
To view the truth behind Kimberly-Clark's claims that it protects ancient forests, please visit the Forest Destruction Photo Gallery.
Photo courtesy of WWF/Kurt Prinz
