A Win for Indonesia's Forests is "In the Bag."

Release from Rainforest Action Network....

Packaging Supplier to Fashion’s Finest Rejects Rainforest Destruction

PAK 2000 to Separate Itself from Asia Pulp and Paper, Pledges New Procurement Policy

December 2, San Francisco – After a two-month campaign by Rainforest Action Network and pressure from fashion industry leaders, New Hampshire based luxury packaging company PAK 2000 has announced that they will cut all financial ties with their majority shareholder, Asia Pulp and Paper (APP), by the end of 2009. Additionally, RAN and PAK 2000 have agreed to work together on developing and implementing a leadership paper policy in the first quarter of 2010. As a leading supplier of paper bags and packaging products to fashion brands like Versace, Valentino, Prada and J.Crew, PAK 2000’s move gives options to fashion companies seeking to remove rainforest destruction from their supply chains.

“Indonesia is ground zero for deforestation and climate change,” said Lafcadio Cortesi of Rainforest Action Network. “Through its actions PAK 2000 is demonstrating that paper from rainforest destruction is not a bargain for the fashion industry or for our children’s future.”

PAK 2000’s move puts them in line with a growing trend embraced by companies like Tiffany’s & Co., H&M Group, Gucci Group, and Ferragamo, all of whom have announced commitments to end their relationship with controversial suppliers, including APP, and to source recycled paper or paper that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. As part of its new procurement policy, PAK 2000 has committed to phasing out all controversial and high conservation value forest fiber from its paper products within 180 days. The company has also pledged to develop and implement a “leadership” paper policy that incorporates strong preferences for recycled and Forest Stewardship Council certified papers, transparency and less carbon intensive papers.

“We’re all thinking about our global footprints these days,” said Kate Dillon, a leading fashion model. “PAK 2000’s actions will make it easier for fashion companies to source environmentally responsible paper and provide one tangible step down the path of environmental leadership.”

PAK 2000’s move is a win for the fashion industry, but also for the Indonesian rainforests, the second largest standing rainforests left in the world and home to unique species like the orangutan, Sumatran tiger and the Sun Bear. It’s also a win for the global climate. Worldwide, the degradation and destruction of tropical rainforests is responsible for fifteen percent of all annual greenhouse emissions. The carbon emissions resulting from Indonesia’s rapid deforestation account for around six percent of global emissions: more than the combined emissions from all the cars, planes, trucks, buses and trains in United States and have made Indonesia the world’s third largest greenhouse gas emitter.