DALLAS--Dec. 1, 2004-- FedEx Kinko's Office and Print Services, an operating company of FedEx Corp., has once again taken action to dramatically reduce its ecological footprint by increasing the recycled content of the paper used behind the counter at more than 1,100 U.S. FedEx Kinko's Office and Print Centers. Moving from 10-percent to 30-percent post-consumer recycled content in the company's highest paper consumption area is expected to raise the company's annual post-consumer recycled content average to an estimated 26.2 percent. This represents a jump of nine percentage points over its 2003 average. According to life-cycle calculations by Environmental Defense, FedEx Kinko's will annually conserve an estimated(1) 18,850 tons of wood, enough to make copy paper for 402,450 people. This is also equal to conserving 92 billion British thermal units (BTUs) of total energy, or the residential energy used annually by 880 households. "By increasing the post-consumer recycled content of the paper FedEx Kinko's stocks in its full-service production machines, we've once again moved the needle by implementing leading sustainable business practices," said Steve Grupe, vice president of global sourcing for FedEx Kinko's. "This achievement also serves as a shining example of how establishing progressive purchasing policies and working closely with key suppliers enables a company like FedEx Kinko's to pursue a more sustainable future." FedEx Kinko's worked closely with representatives from International Paper and IP's xpedx paper distribution business throughout the selection process. The final result was a new private-labeled paper that meets FedEx Kinko's operational, quality and environmental parameters. "FedEx Kinko's commitment to partnering with International Paper provides a model approach to environmentally sustainable procurement," said David Struhs, vice president of environmental affairs at International Paper. "Working together closely enabled FedEx Kinko's and IP to develop a solution that balanced environmental impact, business and financial implications and customer needs." The new paper moves FedEx Kinko's closer to achieving its goal of a 30-percent post-consumer recycled content average across all paper and packaging. The company established this long-term goal just over a year ago in its Forest-based Products Procurement Policy (March 2003). FedEx Kinko's plans to work with non-profit organizations and other outside stakeholders regarding sustainable forest management practices. According to Tom Murray, project manager for corporate partnerships at Environmental Defense, "FedEx Kinko's move to higher post-consumer recycled content, under its Forest-based Products Procurement Policy, will decrease wood use; reduce the amount of total energy, chemicals and water consumed during paper manufacturing; and reduce solid waste and greenhouse gas emissions. We encourage FedEx Kinko's and other industry leaders to continue to aggressively pursue opportunities to increase recycled content use and improve forest product procurement." "As a participant in the Paper Working Group, a project of Metafore, FedEx Kinko's is one of 11 leading North American businesses working together to make environmentally preferable paper more available and affordable," said Kristin Bonner, project manager for the Paper Working Group (PWG). "Metafore is glad to see FedEx Kinko's continuing its leadership in responsible paper purchasing. By increasing the post-consumer recycled content in its copy paper and sourcing from well-managed forests, FedEx Kinko's has taken another step toward buying and using paper in a more sustainable manner." "We commend FedEx Kinko's for its commitment to environmentally ethical forest products," said Gregory Hile, implementation coordinator at Rainforest Action Network. "Rainforest Action Network has enjoyed working with FedEx Kinko's to support its company-wide policies to purchase and sell paper and packaging from sustainably-managed, independently-audited, non-endangered forests. Today's announcement marks a significant benchmark in a vital aspect of its Forest-based Products Procurement Policy. We look forward to continuing our work with FedEx Kinko's to lead the retail paper sector in the implementation of forest protection policies and encourage other wood and paper buyers to do the same."