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EPPA Recycling Mission Statement

Our Commitments

The European Paper Packaging Alliance’s priorities are to find concrete solutions to increase packaging recycling rate, in line with the new target established by EU Commission, and to reduce carbon emissions of food and foodservice packaging without compromising food safety and human health protection.

EPPA is committed to working with European policymakers to support these common priorities. EPPA wants to play a leading and coordination role across the system (Customers, Waste Management, Fiber Recycling Mills) in driving in-store recycling programs :

  • Sorting and Collecting waste fibers
  • Converting into recycled paperboards through standard mills
  • Closing the loops
  • Scaling the process
Recycling Mission Statement

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Key
Messages

Our fiber-based packaging disposables are made using renewable and recyclable resources that come mostly from European certified natural forests.

Paper is the most recycled of all materials and recycling of fibre is more eco-efficient than other waste management options.

The use of recycled fibre complements the need for virgin wood fibre to meet societal demands for paper and board products.

In the long term, a sustainable forest management strategy aimed at maintaining or increasing forest carbon stocks, while producing an annual sustained yield of timber, fibre or energy from the forest, will generate the largest sustained mitigation benefit.

Consumers can be certain that products are made in sustainable ways that respect the environment.

Recycling Mission Statement
Recycling Mission Statement

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Key Facts

European forests, from where the region’s paper mills source over 90% of their wood fibre, have been growing by an area equivalent to 1,500 football pitches every day

Between 2005 and 2015, European forests grew by 44,160km2 that’s an area larger than Switzerland. This has been mainly due to afforestation (e.g. planting and seedling of trees on land that was not previously forested)

The overall and positive climate effect is estimated at ‐806 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents annually. This corresponds to c. 20% of all fossil emissions in the European Union.

Over 70% of this forest area is certified to FSC or PEFC standards, thanks in part to the support of the print and paper industry.

Over 72% of paper consumption in Europe is recycled, more than 60 million tonnes of used paper are collected in Europe each year.