The Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) says it is disappointed that a recent BBC news item on the carbon impact of paper failed to “give the full picture”.
The CPI says that a recent BBC article which presented the de-inking of paper as being novel was “disappointing”. The CPI says that the method shown may be innovative, but industrial scale de-inking has been a fact of life for the commercial recycling of newsprint and office paper for many decades.
The UK’s Paper-based Industries are taking a leading role in the net zero circular bioeconomy.
In 2021, the CPI says the UK recovered for recycling 71% of all paper used, with 22% being unrecoverable (such as toilet tissue) and only 7% disposed of by other means; across Europe (including the UK) the average recycled content of a corrugated box is 88%.
The CPI says that the UK’s Paper-based Industries are committed to decarbonisation by 2050, saying that based on 1990 levels, carbon emissions in the UK had, by 2021, already fallen by 72% and continue to decline.
The confederation continues that the industry has a challenging 2050 decarbonisation roadmap and is working actively with Government and its supply chain to implement it.
Director General of CPI, Andrew Large, said: “I’m disappointed that the BBC has chosen to present this partial and potentially misleading report on the Paper Industry.
“The UK’s Paper-based Industries are taking a leading role in the net zero circular bioeconomy and we are more than happy to present and discuss our achievements and positive plans for the future. We hope that the BBC and other media outlets will engage with us to give the British public the full picture.”
