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AF&PA Announces 2023 Award-Winning Sustainability Projects

8 Member Companies Recognized for Outstanding Initiatives in Sustainability, Innovation and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. 

WASHINGTON – The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) today announced its Better Practices, Better Planet 2030 Sustainability Award winners. The awards recognize exemplary sustainability programs and initiatives in the paper and wood products manufacturing.

“Our sustainability awards are outstanding examples of our goals in action,” said AF&PA President and CEO Heidi Brock. “We received our highest number of sustainability awards applications to date. We are so pleased to present these awards and deeply value the innovative work being done across our industry to advance safety, sustainability, and diversity, equity and inclusion.

Better Practices, Better Planet is one of the longest standing sustainability initiatives for a U.S. manufacturing industry. The program was established more than a decade ago.

The sustainability award winners demonstrate the industry’s long-held commitment to improving practices that advance sustainable products for a sustainable future. The 2023 Sustainability Award winners were selected by a judging panel with representatives from Clemson University, the Department of Energy, GreenBlue, the National Association of Manufacturers, Pure Strategies and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

AF&PA Congratulates the Following Winners: 

Leadership in Sustainability – Safety
Georgia-Pacific LLC: Save My Life Digital Work Process

Leadership in Sustainability – Circular Value Chain
Graphic Packaging International, LLC:  Boardio™ Fiber-based Bottle

Leadership in Sustainability – Water Management
Sappi North America: Cloquet Mill Effluent TSS Reduction Project

Leadership in Sustainability – Greenhouse Gas Reductions
Sonoco Products Company: Renewable Natural Gas Project

Leadership in Sustainability – Resilient U.S. Forests
International Paper: Promoting Forest Bird Awareness and Conservation 

Innovation in Sustainability
Seaman Paper: Vela Bags for Transport Packaging

Innovation in Sustainability
Ahlstrom:  PawPrint® Sustainable Pet Food Packaging

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
The Procter & Gamble Company: P&G Paper Equity and Inclusion

“We have an impressive range of projects and initiatives to highlight this year. Congratulations to all the winners,” said Brian McPheely, AF&PA Board Chair and Global CEO of Pratt Industries, Inc. “These awards demonstrate how our industry is making progress on our Better Practices, Better Planet 2030 goals. This year’s winners showcase the power of partnership, collaboration and innovation to advance a more sustainable future.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) serves to advance public policies that foster economic growth, job creation and global competitiveness for a vital sector that makes the essential paper and packaging products Americans use every day. The U.S. forest products industry employs more than 925,000 people, largely in rural America, and is among the top 10 manufacturing sector employers in 44 states. Our industry accounts for approximately 4.7% of the total U.S. manufacturing GDP, manufacturing more than $435 billion in products annually. AF&PA member companies are significant producers and users of renewable biomass energy and are committed to making sustainable products for a sustainable future through the industry’s decades-long initiative — Better Practices, Better Planet 2030