J. Pack. Sci. Tech. Vol. 13 No.4 (2004)

This is IPP!
An Example of Successful Environmental Measures
within the Packaging Chain in Sweden.
Agneta MELIN*S u m m a r y
For several years now environmental activities within the Swedish industry have been conductedfrom a holistic perspective. The basis for this is a method of approach that is based on continuous
improvements, environmental management systems, lifecycle analyses and other codes ofconduct, that have been introduced voluntarily with the object of improving the efficiency ofenvironmental activities.

Lifecycle analyses are used to decide priorities for the environmental protection activities and incommunications with the outside world. The method improves the knowledge available about
the flow of resources and emissions into and from business establishments. The methodology is
dynamic in that it builds on continuous improvements rather than on static sets of rules.

The management systems are based on effective and regular self-control and on external audits
by independent auditors, as well as extensive preventive environmental measures to minimize therisk of harming health and the environment. Joint action by players in the production chain,customers and other stakeholders is an essential ingredient in this process. This joint action is
critical for success in environmental activities.

A legal background that takes full account of a dynamic methodology is also very important.
Many of the means of control and measures proposed in the EU Commission's strategy on IPP
are already in use in industry's environmental activities.
_________________________________________________________________________________________*Tetra Pak Sweden Birger Jaisgatan 18 D S-102 42 Stockholm, Sweden- 2 0 5 -This is IPP!

The individual goals of industry, in combination with the market forces, have proven to havegreat potential when it comes to bringing about environmental improvements in many areas andthus in leading society towards sustainable development. A holistic approach to the environmentis necessary in order to optimize use of resources and reduce environmental impact. Knowledge,
the dynamic methodology and the effective means that are applied in industry's environmental
activities, as illustrated in this article, thus reduce the need for detailed regulations. The article isbased on a document about IPP written by Stora Enso, the Swedish Forest Industries Federation
and Tetra Pak.

BackgroundThe environmental activities taking place within paper and packaging industry have clear
objectives. Initially, they were focused on the environmental impact of local emissions, but, as
more has been learnt and environmental protection measures have been taken, they havechanged character and direction. Today's environmental activities are based on a lifecycle
approach that involves many players and places greater focus on the products. The
environmental measures are now based on a holistic approach with the goal of reducing the total
environmental impact from raw material to recycling and recovery. In the case of paper-based
products this means that environmental activities start in the forest and end with the recovery or
recycling of for instance used packaging.

The environmental activities were initially driven by laws and the demands of governmental
bodies , which were soon supplemented by the industry's own initiatives. Environmentalorganizations were also involved since they influenced environmental opinion. Criticism wasprimarily directed towards emissions into water and air, forestry and the growing volumes ofwaste, in this case largely addressed to the packaging industry. The environmental protection
measures that were taken to reduce emissions were effective and resulted in radical reductions inemissions - up to 90% - over a 30-year period. New forestry methods were developed by theforest industry in collaboration with the authorities, environmental organizations and customers.
Nowadays the forest industry uses sustainable forestry methods that take production-related,ecological and social factors into account. The packaging industry, which has faced many
demands from society, was already basing its environmental activities on a holistic approach by
the early 1980s, with a strong focus on all stages of the production chain. It makes use of new
knowledge and tools, such as lifecycle analyses and environmental management systems based onvoluntary co-operation between many different players. It is possible with the aid of these tools- 2 0 6 -

J.Pack.Sci. Tech. Vol. 13 No.4 (2004)

to integrate the demands made by final consumers into the early stages of the production chain.
This methodology results in savings in resources and reduced environmental impact.

Another important aspect of the environmental process is the provision of transparent andreliable environmental information by players at every stage along the chain. The forestry andpackaging industries have spent many years developing a methodology that provides a structured
description of environmental performance and valuable information for environmental
reporting. The relationship with the consumer is important and this is based on a mutual
exchange of information that plays a valuable role in the product development process. The
market has gained a strong position as a force driving this process. Voluntary efforts incombination with joint action by the industry - from suppliers of wood to collectors of used
packaging- are proving to be a good model for bringing about more effective use of resources andreducing environmental impact, seen from an overall perspective.

Environmental goals

The protection of and concern for the environment are urgent matters for industry. One goal ofenvironmental activities is to bring about continuous improvements and an open attitude towards
markets and audiences. The aim is to minimize the environmental impact of all aspects of abusiness, in so far as this is technically possible and economically feasible in accordance with thethinking behind Swedish and EU environmental legislation. When an overall perspective isadopted, measures can be introduced where they will produce the greatest environmental
benefit.

Product and system

This example deals with the distribution of one litre of milk in a Tetra Brik package - from theforest via the production and consumption of a litre of milk to the recycling of the packaging.

Tetra Pak, the forest industry, the food industry and the retail trade aim to help bring about thesafe , effective and environmentally sound production and distribution of liquid foods toconsumers all over the world.

The beverage carton is manufactured out of liquid board to give stability and rigidity, and linedwith polyethylene plastic for protection against moisture. The liquid board is, in turn, mainly a- 2 0 7 -

T hi s i s I P P !

product of the Swedish and Finnish forest industries. The plastic comes from the chemicalindustry and the milk from Swedish farms.

The system - one litre of milk in a Tetra Brik package - has been studied in numerous lifecycle
analyses carried out by Stora Enso, Tetra Pak, Borealis, Swedish Dairy Association and others.
All the studies show that the greatest environmental impact stems from the actual milk
production. The manufacture and disposal of the package represents only about 10% of the total
environmental load. In this way, the packaging helps to reduce the amount of waste and,
subsequently, its total environmental impact.

Environmental activities in the product chain

The environmental activities are based on co-operation throughout the production chain with thegoal of making improvements at each stage of the process. Some examples of improvements aredescribed in the following.

Liquid board manufacturer

The problem of emissions no longer dominates in the environmental activities in the pulp andpaper industry. Research and development have produced new processes and treatments.
Emissions mainly into water have been greatly reduced since the 1970s, as a result of which theenvironmental conditions in lakes and rivers that receive effluent from the pulp and paper mills
have improved markedly.

Forestry methods have been developed in collaboration with many interested parties andconsiderable attention has been devoted to providing open information about the result of thesechanges.

The principle is that forestry shall be responsible and focused on sustainability. It is characterized
by challenging economic, environmental and social goals, which will be reflected in a continuous
improvement process. In modern forestry the environment is taken into consideration inconnection with all harvesting, and forest stands are left untouched for ecological reasons.

One of the most important practical instruments is known as ecological landscape planning. Thishas brought radical changes in working methods and results. One way of facilitating- 2 0 8 -

J.Pack.Sci. Tech. Vol. 13 No.4 (2004)

communication with other parties is have the forestry certificated to verify adherence to longterm sustainable principles, such as FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). High priority is now
given to ensuring that wood comes from areas where sustainable forestry methods are used.

In the area of transport, the objective is to identify systems that save resources and improve
efficiency.

One such example is a new strategy applied by Stora Enso for deliveries from its Swedish mills tocontinental customers; this is known as BasePort. The BasePort transport system is an efficient
multimodal transport system that integrates the Swedish rail system with the North Sea traffic.
The multimodality has been made possible through the development of a new cargo carrier - the
SECU - Stora Enso Cargo Unit. The results to date indicate that it is possible to halve energy
consumption and thus to halve emissions.

Within the product area there are several examples of improvements that have been initiatedthanks to closer co-operation along the product chain on exploiting the improvement potential on
the basis of the functional qualities of the product. It has been possible to reduce the gram of thepaperboard used for the beverage carton without this having a detrimental effect on the quality of
the finished carton. The use of other types of pulp has made it possible to increase the number ofbeverage cartons that can be produced from a given volume of wood, with further savings ofresources as a consequence.

Plastics manufacturer

If a beverage carton is to function effectively as a container for liquids and to resist penetration bymoisture from outside, the packaging should be laminated with polyethylene (LDPE) on theinside and the outside. The lamination process at Tetra Pak's factories generates emissions in theform of plastic fumes, which can cause unpleasant odour in the neighbourhood. These fumes arecleaned by a process of absorption and combustion to reduce emissions into air.

The plastics manufacturer has taken steps to reduce the volume of residual solvent in the plastic,
which has also helped to reduce the volume of fumes. Indeed, the manufacturer has been so
successful that Tetra Pak is now engaged in discussions with the supervisory authority on theconsequent redundancy of the treatment plant for emissions into air. The consumption of thefuel (LPG) needed to operate the treatment plant today generates more CO2 emissions than if- 2 0 9 -This is IPP!

the remaining plastic fumes were emitted without cleaning.

Packaging manufacturer

Environmental activities at the packaging manufacturer are largely a matter of resource
management. This has been achieved by optimizing the use of materials in terms of type andvolume. Modern beverage cartons are made out of a liquid board that is 20% lighter than thatused 30 or 40years ago. This means not only a saving in terms of material but also reduced
environmental impact from transportation.

At many of Tetra Pak's plants, a primary environmental objective has been to reduce emissionsof solvents in the printing ink. It has been possible to virtually eliminate emissions of organic
solvents over a 20-year period with no loss of production, by changing over to water-based inks.

Transportation is another central environmental issue that falls under the environmental
management system. Tetra Pak has produced a guideline for how the company is to work withtransport for both goods and personnel. This instruction applies throughout the Group, andgives the company control, when selecting suppliers, of the transport services, who provides themand in what way, and thus of the environmental impact. In recent years, Tetra Pak has been
involved in the Network for Transport and the Environment (NTM) , in which major Swedishtransport operators have been co-operating on the development of a standard evaluation form forthe suppliers' environmental activities. Tetra Pak use this form in its procurement of transport
services. In that form the transport supplier provide information about the company's
environmental goals and policy, the employees' environmental competence , the energy
consumption of the company's vehicles and emission data. Acting on the replies of the transport
providers, Tetra Pak has colour coded them according to their environmental friendliness : greencoded suppliers are most environmentally friendly, red-coded suppliers are least. On the basis of
this evaluation Tetra Pak has discussions with transport providers on improvements of theiractivities and action plans.

Design for Environment is a methodology to consider and address environmental aspects
throughout product development. In practice it means applying life cycle thinking to productdevelopment. In Tetra Pak the so-called Innovation Process applies to the development of
packages and equipment. Design for Environment specifications are included at every stage,
from idea generation, through prototype development until actual commercial release. At the- 2 1 0 -

J.Pack.Sci.Tech. Vol. 13 No.4 (2004)

end of each phase, a tollgate has to be passed through the evaluation against previously set
environmental objectives. Those objectives include use of resources, use or emissions of harmful
substances, recovery options and possibility to recycle new packages, as well as consumers'
environmental perception. Tetra Pak design for environmental standard has already been
applied in a number of new and existing equipment's and its use in packaging development isbeing strengthened through training of designers and product managers.

Milk producer

Milk production includes all the steps in the process from the cultivation of fodder to the dairy.
The Swedish milk organization, Swedish Dairy Association, has carried out lifecycle analyses toprovide information about the environmental impact of the production process and to introduce
measures where they produce the greatest environmental benefit. The different steps in the
production chain are the farming at the dairy farm, transportation and production at the dairy.
The farm has the greatest environmental impact. Also in the broader perspective, which includes
all the stages from farming to the handling of used milk cartons, farming still has the greatest
environmental impact. This has been illustrated using lifecycle analyses.

When it comes to other types of environmental impact, such as acidification and excessive
fertilization, farming once again plays the main role. Measures have been taken to reduce
nitrogen emissions that are the cause of excessive eutrophication of watercourses. Reduced useof commercial fertilizer and new methods of cultivation have helped to reduce environmental
impact, although expressing the improvements in quantitative terms is difficult. Key figures
being produced by various joint projects should make it possible to quantify these environmental
improvements. Dairy producers have focused their environmental activities on improving theirtransport efficiency. The industry has developed a model for communicating environmental
information about the transportation of dairy products, in the form of an environmental productdeclaration that includes quality assured facts and figures.

ConsumerDeveloping packaging to meet the needs of consumers is important in terms of resource
management. Since the greater part of the total environmental impact of the entire product chain
is caused by farming, it is important that the food in the packaging is consumed and does not go towaste.

- 2 1 1 -

This

is

IPP!

One way of meeting the needs of the consumer is to develop packaging of the right size and typesof packaging that can be resealed after opening. Tetra Pak has developed packaging that isdesigned to meet the needs of different types of customer. The packaging itself helps theconsumer to use all the product - an effective measure to provide the maximum possible benefit
for the environment and for the consumer. Each year, Tetra Pak in Sweden carries out consumer
surveys to keep track of consumer views on packaging and the environment. These surveys showthat the consumer considers the most important environmental aspect is for the packaging to berecyclable. The consumer also wants suitable packaging that preserves and protects the foodproduct, and packaging that is easy to handle and open. As a result of changing consumption
patterns and the increasing number of small households, today's consumer wants drinks
packaging that holds smaller volumes and that can be resealed. Today's consumer takes it for
granted that the environment was taken into account when the packaging was designed andmanufactured and that it can be recycled.

Recovery and recycling

The recovery of used paper products is very advanced in Sweden. Of those paper products thatare covered by mandatory or voluntary producer responsibility, more than 70% are collected andrecycled to produce new paper. If you add to this the volumes recovered for energy, the recovery
rate is almost 90 per cent.

The use of recycled fibre as a raw material in the paper industry is not a new phenomenon in
Sweden. The collection of newspapers and magazines from households and of corrugated board
packaging from trade and industry has been going on for more than half a century. Over theyears the industry has developed and refined methods of using these attractive raw materials inhigh-quality applications and for a variety of purposes. Following the introduction of producer
responsibility for packaging, the collection from households of corrugated board and other paper
and paperboard packaging really began in earnest. In addition to this, the voluntary efforts put
into collecting office paper have improved and expanded the arrangements for collecting woodfree paper from offices. Producer responsibility for newspapers and magazines has also
stimulated the collection of these types of paper in sparsely populated areas and in the inland
regions of northern Sweden.

82 per cent of the used paper collected (recovered paper) consists of newspapers and corrugatedboard. Packaging collected from households accounts for 7 per cent and office paper for 11 per- 2 1 2 -

J.Pack.Sci. Tech. Vol. 13 No.4 (2004)

cent of all material collected.

The term "recovered paper" is an umbrella term for all types of collected paper products Thanks
to technical developments, many different kinds of paper products can be recycled for use as raw
materials. For example, numerous mills can now, after extensive investment, recycle plastic
coated and aluminum-laminated paperboard, which means these products are no longer a
problem technically. The higher the degree of recycling, the greater the volume of waste
products that must be dealt with. Some of the rejected materials-plastic, waste fibre - can beused to produce energy and can even make a positive contribution to the overall financial
situation at the factories handling this fraction. New investments in energy installations will
possibly increase the return on this fraction, making energy recovery a more attractive option.
An example of the productive use of waste that was once sent to land fill is provided by Örebro
Kartongbruk, which produces plasterboard. The raw material used is waste paper that contains
paperboard, including beverage cartons, collected from consumers. By installing a new solid fuelboiler and introducing new drying techniques, the mill has been able to reduce its environmental
impact and increase its level of environmental awareness. The energy locked into the waste can
now be recovered, which meant a marked reduction in the consumption of electricity and oil.
The volumes of waste sent to land fill have consequently been virtually eliminated.

Discussion

From having once been handled as a quite separate activity in companies, environmental
activities are now increasingly integrated into the business as such, a development that has been
driven by the demands placed on both company and product by an environmentally-friendly
market. Today, environmental problems are tackled from a holistic perspective.

An important aspect of this market-driven environmental development is the forceful measures
undertaken voluntarily by industry in the early 1980s, when lifecycle analyses were first used as
an internal tool for locating the parts of a product chain where environmental activities could beapplied in order to obtain the greatest possible environmental benefit, and for publicising theenvironmental performance of the product or business. The forestry and packaging industries
were among the first to use the method and thus contributed to its development.

This holistic approach to solving environmental problems paved the way for a new set of213

This is IPP!

standards that would form the basis and provide support for a group of tools designed to help
companies organise their environmental activities. Industry took an active role in the
preparation of these standards, and by the mid-1990s it became possible for companies to havethe environmental management systems certificated in accordance with international andEuropean standards (ISO 14001 and EMAS respectively). Environmental management systems
have been introduced in many companies and are an important tool, not least in relation tocustomers, since the environmental management system allows a company to publish its
environmental activities in a credible and reliable manner.

An environmental management system bases its activities upon a number of aspects, whichthemselves serve as the basis of the company's environmental policy and goals. The systemdepends on having information about all flows at every point of the production chain - frombefore input to after output. This means that many different players contribute to the total
environmental performance of any one product.

A chain of players begins with the supplier of the raw materials and ends with the recycling ofproducts. Each individual part in the chain affects or is affected by the following and preceding
ones. The environmental activities of the suppliers and recycling operators are therefore
important. Customers not only demand results from the environmental management system,
they also expect environmental information about the products, at times specific, at times
concerning its entire life cycle, information which many companies provide. Such information is
an important component in any environmental management system, since it is based onprocedures for areas such as the monitoring, follow up and control of flows.

Nowadays, companies take far-reaching responsibility for their products during their entire
lifecycle from extraction of raw material to its handling once it has served its original purpose.
Industry has also helped to draw up standards for products, which allow consistent and credible
product assessments to be made. These include the product-related standards in the ISO 14000
series (e.g.LCA, design for environment, environmental performance) and standards linked to
the EU's Packaging Directive.

A few years ago, a number of companies in the packaging industry in Sweden set up Miljopack, a
trade and industry group dedicated to developing a practical self-imposed control system for thehandling of part of the packaging legislation. The government has welcomed the initiative and isshowing great confidence in the industry. This solution reduces the need for detailed legislation- 2 1 4 -

J.Pack.Sci. Tech. Vol. 13 No.4 (2004)

and official controls.

Many types of product, including packaging, are covered by what is known as "producer
responsibility" , either mandatory or voluntary. This producer responsibility includes packaging
and newspapers and encourages a voluntary undertaking for office paper. Companies in theforest and packaging industries are thus demonstrating their readiness to find solutions thatprovide effective processing of used products.

Many companies attach importance to publishing their environmental activities to different
interested parties. Most of this is done on a voluntary basis in the form of environmental productdeclarations, labeling and environmental audits. Exchange of information is essential for driving
developments.

It is also important that the environmental data are published in an uncomplicated and credible
manner, and designed to meet the needs of different target groups. Consequently, companies inseveral industries are collaborating with researchers to produce suitable databases.

The same holistic approach as that developed by the companies along the packaging chain overthe past decade has also been formulated within the EU in the form of the Integrated Product
Policy (IPP). This policy has been designed to reduce the environmental impact of different
products and services and thereby limit the flow of pollutants. The policy is intended to provide
guidance for developments in the product area not only on a national level but also for Sweden's
activities within the EU and globally.

The methodology and procedures that have been developed in the environmental area have
proved successful and effective. Measures and commitments are often costly, particularly in theearly stages, but in the long term are shown to generate savings in resources, streamlining and areduction in environmental impact. The IPP perspective has been embodied in countless
production chains in Swedish business. All this puts Swedish industry in a good position to
respond to all the demands, both short- and long-term, that may be made on it in the future by aenvironmentally aware market.
(原稿受付2004年7月7日)- 2 1 5 -