Will advances in digital technology ever create a world without paper?
We're not sure, but it seems that technological advances have increased the world's need for paper. So as long as people need brochures, catalogues and other printed materials, we'll be minimising the impact on the environment by offering greener solutions such as paper sourced from sustainably managed forests, or recycled using environmentally-sustainable processes.
Why is it so important to support recycled paper? Isn't it biodegradable anyway?
If paper is not recycled, it ends up in landfill. It is biodegradable, but it takes about 50 years to fully disintegrate in landfill. Recycling your paper, and buying recycled paper, helps to ease the strain on the earth.
Why is Worldwide Online Printing offering recycled products?
We believe that helping the planet is everyone's responsibility, so we've added recycled products to our product range to service the needs of all of our customers. Our standard products are still available, but we'll be encouraging our customers to use earth-friendly products as much as possible.
Do the earth-friendly products offered by Worldwide cost more than standard products?
The production processes involved in creating recycled paper mean that these products do cost more. The products we offer are similar to organic vegetables or even hybrid cars - they cost a bit more but buying them to reduce your impact on the earth helps to create a healthier planet. Over time, as more environmentally-friendly products are developed, we hope that the cost of these products will be more in line with the cost of standard products.
Forestry Stewardship Council
Before you lose the will to live, we also need to mention the FSC.
This is a bunch of bods from around the world who are responsible for identifying and certifying the various papers on the market.
Although the paper we've carefully chosen for our Worldwide Green range is FSC certified, we CANNOT say so, use the logo - or even mention the FSC until we've completed the process of becoming FSC certified in our Hubs.
What does the recycled symbol mean?
And just as we've heard that, when it comes to paper, the 'recycled' symbol on its own doesn't mean much, there are quite a few other head-scratchers:
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'Chemical-free'. Cute - but not true. Nothing's free of chemicals. Water is a chemical. All plants, animals, and humans are made of chemicals - as are all of our printing products.
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'Non-toxic'. Again, everything's toxic if you absorb enough of it. Water, oxygen, salt - they're all potentially hazardous.
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'All-Natural'. OK - but so is arsenic. And uranium, mercury and formaldehyde. They're also all poisonous.
Remember, when you choose Worldwide Green, you can be crystal clear about the credential which matters; it's made from 100% post-consumer waste.
