Smurfit Kappa cuts landfilling

In 2015, the company introduced a target to reduce waste sent to landfill from mills by 30% by 2020 compared with a benchmark year of 2013.

Its ninth annual sustainable development report notes that most of the landfill material was plastic, wood, metals and other impurities, with the recovered paper being used to produce paper and board.

The report, Sustainability in Every Fibre, highlights Smurfit Kappa’s focus on environmental and social responsibility, including the adoption of circular business models, with a commitment to using only 100% sustainably sourced fibres in its products and processes.

It records progress on other goals:

• 99.9% of paper produced and sourced for packaging solutions is now FSC, PEFC or SFI Chain of Custody certified
• 22.6% reduction in carbon emissions per tonne of paper produced since 2005
• 29% reduction in organic content of water returned to the environment from paper and board mills since 2005

Chief executive Tony Smurfit said: “We view sustainability as an important element of a responsible business culture, and we continue to prove how our way of working contributes to a better, more sustainable world and a brighter future.”