Sustaining Forests

 

Our entire business depends on the sustainability of forests. A sustainably managed forest is one that maintains and enhances economic, social and environmental values for the benefit of present and future generations. Responsibly managed forests provide benefit air and water quality, wildlife habitats, recreational opportunities and mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Responsible forestry is part of the circular economy; healthy working forests enable us to produce renewable and recyclable paper that people need for education and communication while contributing to the long-term health of our entire ecosystem.

 

 

Responsible Sourcing

 

 

We are committed to sourcing 100% of our fiber from sustainably managed forests, while safeguarding forests, biodiversity and watersheds. As one of the world’s largest producers of fiber based, renewable paper, we play an active role in preventing deforestation and forest degradation, promoting and increasing the use of responsibly managed forests and supporting markets for certified products.

This is done by adhering to our Global Fiber Procurement Policy, which clearly states our unwillingness to accept wood that: is endangered, comes from an unknown region or origin, has been illegally harvested or acquired, threatens High Conservation Value forests, comes from sources that are known to be involved in the violation of human rights including conflict timber, or where indigenous peoples and local communities have not had the opportunity to give or withhold their free, prior and informed consent comes from deforestation or conversion.

 

Global Fiber Procurement Policy

Fiber By The Numbers

Percent of wood sourced by country:

43%
of wood sourced in Brazil
15%
of wood sourced in France
10%
of wood sourced in Sweden
30%
of wood sourced in United States
2%
of wood sourced in other countries*
*Primarily Poland, Germany and Portugal

100 %

Globally, 100% of sourced fiber followed the FSC® Controlled Wood standard

99 %

of our owned forestland is certified to the FSC (C101761) Forest Management standard

60 %

of fiber sourced globally is FSC and/or PEFC certified

How We Source Fiber

Man walking away in forest

Our Saillat, France, mill relies on privately owned forests to meet its fiber supply needs. Our woodsourcing subsidiary in France, Comptoir des Bois de Brive (CBB), specializes in purchasing and harvesting timber from surrounding areas to supply the Saillat mill, as well as other users in the local wood industry.

Central to CBB’s fiber sourcing program is the FSC Forest Management Group Certificate managed by Sylvamo Foret Services (SFS), a subsidiary environmental engineering firm that provides forest management and certification services to forest owners. SFS has grown its membership to more than 1,600 landowners, representing 35,200 hectares (87,000 acres) or nearly one-third of all FSC-certified forest areas in France. Both CBB and SFS have pioneered the development and application of FSC’s Ecosystem Services program in France, which creates economic incentives for landowners to protect and conserve areas of high conservation value.

Our Nymolla, Sweden, mill partners closely with a wood supplier to fulfill the requirements of Sylvamo’s global fiber procurement policy. They supply hardwood and long-fiber softwood pulp from responsibly managed forests. A majority of fiber is sourced within a 90 kilometer (56 mile) radius. The mill holds chain-of-custody fiber certifications according to FSC and PEFC standards and employs a traceability system to document and verify the origin of wood used.

Aerial view of eucalyptus trees

Brazil, the only country in which we own forestland, allows us to have the most beneficial ecological footprint through our forest management programs, such as our Bem Te Vi stewardship program.

Our 100,000 hectares (247,000 acres) of forestland are located close to our mills and provide a sustainable source of high-quality hardwood fiber. Eucalyptus trees produce an ideal fiber for papermaking and grow to maturity within seven years. Eucalyptus also requires less wood to manufacture pulp compared to other commonly used species, making it an environmentally attractive species for papermaking as well as for generating renewable energy.

Nearly all our owned forestland is certified to the FSC and PEFC forest management standards. More than one-fourth of our forestland is set aside for conservation and features forests of native tree species to support biodiversity habitat preservation. View our Forest Management Plan.

Field with trees and blue sky with clouds

To provide wood to our Eastover, South Carolina, and Ticonderoga, New York, mills, we work with a sole supplier, who is certified to both the FSC and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI®) chain of custody standards. It supplies fiber harvested from responsibly managed forests in the surrounding areas.

Approximately three-quarters of the wood used at our Ticonderoga mill is sourced in New York, with the remainder coming primarily from Vermont and New Hampshire. Nearly all the wood used at our Eastover mill comes from South Carolina and North Carolina.

Since most of this fiber comes from privately owned forests, the positive impact this strategic partnership has on social and economic development for people and communities within these regions is substantial. This further creates additional opportunities for engaging communities around sustainable forest management practices.