Print is sustainable.

Forest certification has led to greater recognition of the importance of environmentally and socially sound wood and pulp products. Quad/Graphics customers have several options for sourcing environmentally responsible paper.

Sustainable sources

Paper manufacturing requires the use of natural resources. Paper manufacturers and their suppliers are reducing the size of their environmental footprint by obtaining tree fiber from sustainable sources, by using water responsibly, and by making frugal energy choices.. As a result, foresters, environmentalists and paper manufacturers are working together to make great strides to protect forests and wildlife habitat, manage natural resources for sustainability and maintain air and water quality.

Forest certification is a system of forest inspection plus a means of tracking timber and paper through a "chain of custody" — following the raw material through to the finished product. This is all to ensure that the products have come from forests which are well managed — meaning they take into account environmental, social and economic principles and criteria.

Certification includes those from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). As a result, the amount of forest covering the United States has remained relatively constant for the last 100 years.

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) | The FSC is an independent, non-governmental, not for profit organization established to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests. It provides standard setting, trademark assurance and accreditation services for companies and organizations interested in responsible forestry. Products carrying the FSC label are independently certified to assure consumers that they come from forests that are managed to meet the social, economic and ecological needs of present and future generations. FSC maintains representation in more than 45 countries. For further information, please visit: www.fsc.org

Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) | SFI Inc. is a 501c(3) non-profit charitable organization, and is solely responsible for maintaining, overseeing and improving the Sustainable Forestry Initiative program (www.sfiprogram.org), that is internationally recognized and among the largest in the world. It is one of the fastest-growing forest certification programs with over 70 million hectares (175 million acres) of SFI-certified forests across North America. The SFI Standard also includes unique fibre sourcing requirements that promote responsible forest management on all suppliers’ lands and a chain-of-custody certification, which is used to tell buyers how much certified fibre is in a specific product. The SFI forest standard is endorsed by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes, a global umbrella organization that has strict requirements for endorsement. SFI Inc. is governed by a three-chamber board of directors representing environmental, social and economic sectors equally. For more information about the SFI program, visit www.sfiprogram.org.

Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) | The PEFC Council is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organization and is the world's largest forest certification organization. PEFC promotes sustainable forest management – environmentally, socially beneficial and economically viable management of forests for present and future generations – through independent third-party forest certification. Founded in 1999, the PEFC provides an assurance mechanism to purchasers of wood and paper products that they are promoting the sustainable management of forests. For more information, see www.pefc.org.

Sustainable processes

Quad/Graphics uses alcohol-free substitutes with glycol15 during the plate-making process, low-VOC water-miscible solvent blanket washes during press cleanup and disposes of chemicals through EPA-licensed hazardous waste disposal companies.

Although paper use is traditionally identified with reading and writing, beginning in 1993, packaging has replaced communications as the single largest category of paper use at 41 percent of all paper used. [Source: North American Factbook PPI, 1995.]

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