The pulp and paper industry in Europe accounts for about a quarter of world production and is a major employer. The leading producing countries are Finland, Sweden and Germany. The industry is a large user of renewable energy and achieved a recycling rate of 71.5% in 2015. [1]
The European paper industry produces more than 90 million tonnes of paper and board and more than 36 million tonnes of pulp annually. Directly it provides 178,000 jobs and indirectly 3 million jobs along the forest and paper chain. [2] The European paper industry's turnover is approximately 180 billion euros. [3] 633 companies are represented by the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) [4] and these account for 23% of world production. The raw material consists of 40% recycled fibre and 44% virgin pulp, the balance being other pulp (1%) and non-fibrous materials (15%). 94% of the wood requirements come from managed forests within Europe.
In national terms the largest paper producer is Germany, followed by Finland, Sweden and France; the largest pulp producers are Finland and Sweden. The two largest European companies in the sector, Stora Enso and UPM, are both based in Finland.
The European pulp and paper industry is the largest industrial producer and consumer of energy from renewable sources. Its share of biomass-based energy exceeds 55% of its total primary annual energy consumption of 1,301,483 TJ. [2] The sector has adopted an objective to reduce carbon emissions of 80% by 2050, which is likely to involve new technological methods to reduce water usage and thus reduce energy usage. [3]
Paper for recycling is a major source of the paper industry's raw material, which is why the industry aims to maximise the European recycling rate. The recycling rate along the paper value chain (ERPC) reached 71.5% in 2015 - exceeding the voluntary target of 70% that was set by the industries declaration in 2011. The total amount of paper collected and sent to recycling in paper mills in 2015 was almost 56 million tonnes. 18.2% was exported for recycling in third countries in 2015. [1] The recycling rate is now considered close to its maximum possible.
In 2011, the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) [4] launched the “2050 Roadmap to a low-carbon bioeconomy”, [5] as the first European manufacturing industry sector to react to the European Commission's roadmap towards a low-carbon economy with its own sector roadmap. The “Two Team Project”, which ran in 2013, sought to find the most innovative breakthrough technologies of the industry with two teams competing against each other. Eight breakthrough technologies made it to the publication. [6] In 2015, CEPI collected more than 40 of the industry's most innovative products in another publication, “The Age of Fibre”, [7] showcasing once again the versatility and innovation in the industry.
In 2011 the top 10 forest and paper products companies in Europe were: [8]
| Rank | Company | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stora Enso |  Finland /  Sweden |
| 2 | UPM | Finland |
| 3 | SCA | Sweden |
| 4 | Smurfit Kappa |  Ireland |
| 5 | Mondi Group |  Austria |
| 6 | Metsäliitto | Finland |
| 7 | Sequana Capital |  France |
| 8 | DS Smith |  United Kingdom |
| 9 | Norske Skog |  Norway |
| 10 | Lenzing | Austria |
Pulp is a fibrous lignocellulosic material prepared by chemically, semi-chemically or mechanically producing cellulosic fibers from wood, fiber crops, waste paper, or rags. Mixed with water and other chemicals or plant-based additives, pulp is the major raw material used in papermaking and the industrial production of other paper products.
UPM-Kymmene Oyj is a Finnish forest industry company. UPM-Kymmene was formed by the merger of Kymmene Corporation with Repola Oy and its subsidiary United Paper Mills Ltd in 1996. UPM consists of six business areas: UPM Fibres, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Communication Papers and UPM Plywood. The Group employs around 17,000 people and it has production plants in 11 countries. UPM shares are listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki stock exchange. UPM is the only paper company which is listed in the global Dow Jones Sustainability Index and also a member of the United Nations Global Compact organization.
The pulp and paper industry comprises companies that use wood, specifically pulpwood, as raw material and produce pulp, paper, paperboard, and other cellulose-based products.
Paperboard is a thick paper-based material. While there is no rigid differentiation between paper and paperboard, paperboard is generally thicker than paper and has certain superior attributes such as foldability and rigidity. According to ISO standards, paperboard is a paper with a grammage above 250 g/m2, but there are exceptions. Paperboard can be single- or multi-ply.
The recycling of paper is the process by which waste paper is turned into new paper products. It has a number of important benefits: It saves waste paper from occupying homes of people and producing methane as it breaks down. Because paper fibre contains carbon, recycling keeps the carbon locked up for longer and out of the atmosphere. Around two-thirds of all paper products in the US are now recovered and recycled, although it does not all become new paper. After repeated processing the fibres become too short for the production of new paper, which is why virgin fibre is frequently added to the pulp recipe.
Tissue paper or simply tissue is a lightweight paper or, light crêpe paper. Tissue can be made from recycled paper pulp on a paper machine.
A paper bag is a bag made of paper, usually kraft paper. Paper bags can be made either with virgin or recycled fibres to meet customers' demands. Paper bags are commonly used as shopping carrier bags and for packaging of some consumer goods. They carry a wide range of products from groceries, glass bottles, clothing, books, toiletries, electronics and various other goods and can also function as means of transport in day-to-day activities.
In industrial chemistry, black liquor is the by-product from the kraft process when digesting pulpwood into paper pulp removing lignin, hemicelluloses and other extractives from the wood to free the cellulose fibers.
The Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) is the pan-European association representing the forest fibre and paper industry.
A forest product is any material derived from forestry for direct consumption or commercial use, such as lumber, paper, or fodder for livestock. Wood, by far the dominant product of forests, is used for many purposes, such as wood fuel or the finished structural materials used for the construction of buildings, or as a raw material, in the form of wood pulp, that is used in the production of paper. All other non-wood products derived from forest resources, comprising a broad variety of other forest products, are collectively described as non-timber forest products (NTFP). Non-timber forest products are viewed to have fewer negative effects on forest ecosystem when providing income sources for local community.
Renewable energy in Finland increased from 34% of the total final energy consumption (TFEC) in 2011 to 48% by the end of 2021, primarily driven by bioenergy (38%), hydroelectric power (6.1%), and wind energy (3.3%). In 2021, renewables covered 53% of heating and cooling, 39% of electricity generation, and 20% of the transport sector. By 2020, this growth positioned Finland as having the third highest share of renewables in TFEC among International Energy Agency (IEA) member countries.
Energy in Finland describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Finland. Energy policy of Finland describes the politics of Finland related to energy. Electricity sector in Finland is the main article regarding electricity in Finland.
The environmental effects of paper are significant, which has led to changes in industry and behaviour at both business and personal levels. With the use of modern technology such as the printing press and the highly mechanized harvesting of wood, disposable paper became a relatively cheap commodity, which led to a high level of consumption and waste. The rise in global environmental issues such as air and water pollution, climate change, overflowing landfills and clearcutting have all lead to increased government regulations. There is now a trend towards sustainability in the pulp and paper industry as it moves to reduce clear cutting, water use, greenhouse gas emissions, fossil fuel consumption and clean up its influence on local water supplies and air pollution.
Energy in Switzerland is transitioning towards sustainability, targeting net zero emissions by 2050 and a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
Jussi Pesonen is the president and chief executive officer of the Finnish pulp, paper and timber company UPM since 2004.
Energy in Sweden describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Sweden. Electricity sector in Sweden is the main article of electricity in Sweden. The Swedish climate bill of February 2017 aims to make Sweden carbon neutral by 2045. The Swedish target is to decline emission of climate gases 63% from 1990 to 2030 and international transportation excluding foreign flights 70%. By 2014 just over half of the country's total final energy consumption in electricity, heating and cooling and transport combined was provided by renewables, the highest share amongst the then 28 EU member countries. About a third of Sweden's electricity is generated by nuclear power. In generating a year's worth of this energy, Swedes generate about 4 tonnes of CO2 emissions each. Since 2010, sustainability measures have reduced total emissions even as the population has increased.
Climate change has far reaching impacts on the natural environment and people of Finland. Finland was among the top five greenhouse gas emitters in 2001, on a per capita basis. Emissions increased to 58.8 million tonnes in 2016. Finland needs to triple its current cuts to emissions in order to be carbon neutral by 2035. Finland relies on coal and peat for its energy, but plans to phase out coal by 2029. Finland has a target of carbon neutrality by the year 2035 without carbon credits. The policies include nature conservation, more investments in trains, changes in taxation and more sustainable wood burning. After 2035 Finland will be carbon negative, meaning soaking more carbon than emitting.
Fibre modification is a research field in which researchers aim at developing and applying technologies to impart new properties to natural fibres such as those in paper, in order to increase their functionality. Research areas in this field include many different technologies, amongst which the chemical modifications of fibres are widely used. One important sector of application of the chemical modifications is the treatment of wood for giving it enhanced properties such as higher mechanical properties, water impermeability, less hygroscopicity, bacterial and fungal resistance. Transferring and adapting the technical knowledge on fibre modification available for the wood sector to the recycled paper sector is an innovative use of these chemical treatments which has been the subject of studies that have been carried out within an EU co-funded project called Fibre+.
Sofidel is an Italian multinational producer of tissue paper for sanitary and domestic use. The Sofidel Group was founded in 1966. It is one of the world leaders in the tissue paper market and the second largest producer in Europe behind Essity. The privately held company is owned by the Stefani and Lazzareschi families, has subsidiaries in 13 countries and more than 6,600 employees. Lucart
Hemp paper is paper varieties consisting exclusively or to a large extent from pulp obtained from fibers of industrial hemp. The products are mainly specialty papers such as cigarette paper, banknotes and technical filter papers. Compared to wood pulp, hemp pulp offers a four to five times longer fibre, a significantly lower lignin fraction as well as a higher tear resistance and tensile strength. Because the paper industry's processes have been optimized for wood as the feedstock, production costs currently are much higher than for paper from wood.
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