Kimberly-Clark Professional has received Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) chain-of-custody certification for a range of tissue and towel products, making it the first away-from-home tissue products provider in North America to receive the distinction.
"FSC standards are globally recognized as the highest social and environmental standards in forestry," said Richard Thorne, vice president of Kimberly-Clark Professional North America. "This certification enables us to support forest stewardship as well as continue to provide a wide range of sustainable product choices for our customers."
The certification applies to a variety of Kimberly-Clark Professional tissue products marketed under the Kleenex and Scott brand names for the away-from-home market. The products will feature the FSC label on their packaging starting in September 2009. The label certifies that the wood fiber used to make the products comes from well-managed FSC-certified forests or from post-consumer recycled fiber.
FSC is an international, independent organization dedicated to promoting responsible management of the world's forests. It was founded in response to public concern about deforestation and demand for a trustworthy wood-labeling system. FSC has developed a system of forest certification and product labeling that allows consumers to identify wood and wood-based products from well-managed forests that meet the social, economic and ecological needs of present and future generations. FSC also is the only forest certification system supported by environmental groups such as Greenpeace, the World Wildlife Fund, The Nature Conservancy and National Wildlife Federation.
In addition to its FSC-certified products, Kimberly-Clark Professional uses FSC-certified paper for its catalogs, brochures and other printed materials. All catalogs and many other printed materials are also available online, which helps reduce the number of paper copies.
