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[GreenYes] Recycled Content Office Supplies

According to today's Wall Street Journal ("Staples' Recycled-Content Goal
For Paper Items Triples to 30%, By JOSEPH PEREIRA and CHRISTOPHER J.
CHIPELLO):


"Staples Inc., under pressure from environmental activists, said it aims to
more than triple the amount of recycled material in the paper products it
sells -- a move that could pressure rival retailers to follow suit.
The big Framingham, Mass., office-supply company also said it will phase out
paper products sourced from "endangered forests" and intends to offer, by
the end of 2006, only products made from forests certified as well-managed.
Important elements of Staples' new environmental program remain to be
determined. Staples didn't set a timetable for boosting the recycled content
in its paper products to an average of 30% from less than 10%, noting that
supply constraints, consumer demand and profitability would be factors. And
the company said it continues to work with scientific consultants and
environmentalists to figure out how it will define "endangered" forests.
Still, environmentalists praised Tuesday's announcement as a major
milestone. By setting the 30% target for recycled content, Staples "has put
itself way ahead of the pack," said Todd Paglia of ForestEthics, a San
Francisco environmental group that helped spearhead hundreds of
demonstrations at Staples stores in the past two years. Other retailers are
likely to follow Staples' lead, Mr. Paglia said.
Office Depot Inc., Delray Beach, Fla., has been seeking to become more
environmentally friendly for "a number of years" but has stepped up efforts
over the past two years, said company spokeswoman Eileen Dunn. "Our overall
recycled content is in the double digits," she said.
OfficeMax Inc. plans to evaluate "some of the valid points that some of
these [environmental] groups bring up," said Steve Baisden, a spokesman for
the Shaker Heights, Ohio, retailer. Mr. Baisden said he wasn't sure what the
overall percentage of recycled content is in the company's paper offerings."
...

______________________________
Peter Anderson
RECYCLEWORLDS CONSULTING Corp
4513 Vernon Blvd. Suite 15
Madison, WI 53705
Ph:    (608) 231-1100
Fax:   (608) 233-0011
Cell    (608) 438-9062
email: anderson@recycleworlds.net


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