Polestar Sheffield made a major step forward in the development of their environmental strategy when the plant became the first printing company in UK to be awarded the Nordic Ecolabel.

The Nordic Ecolabel Accreditation was established in 1989 by the Nordic Council of Ministers to meet the stringent environmental and climate criteria required to supply printed products into Scandinavia. The Nordic Ecolabel is a seal of approval that the environmental policies employed by Polestar Sheffield can deliver printed products using safe environmental manufacturing processes and materials. These are key factors in achieving a sustainable society, along with being a practical tool for consumers to help them actively choose environmentally approved and safe products. Polestar Sheffield can now sit comfortably alongside other world-leading companies that proudly carry the Nordic Ecolabel, for example Procter & Gamble, Samsung, Sharp, Fujitsu, Scandic Hotels, and SCA.

The Ecolabel project was overseen by Tony Burke, a member of the new Polestar Graduate training scheme. Tony comments:
‘It is really rewarding to be part of a company that is internationally recognised for its environmental policies. Nordic Ecolabel qualifications are second to none and to achieve the Ecolabel now allows Polestar Sheffield sales team to increase our potential market by selling approved printed products into Scandinavia.’ 

Polestar Sheffield Managing Director Phil Boynes added
‘This is a great achievement, not only do we endeavour to print high quality and competitive gravure products but we now do this with the full endorsement of the Nordic Ecolabel.’

The Ecolabel approval follows the Polestar customer summer event, when Barry Hibbert, Chief Executive, set out Polestar’s environmental policy. Barry encouraged publishers to continue to invest in the `golden nugget’ of printing and sought to dispel a number of environmental printing myths. This includes the common misconception that using paper is detrimental to the environment and destroys forests. The fact is that forests are 30% larger today than in 1950 and the annual increase in forest area is equivalent to 1.5million football pitches.

The paper and magazine industry is also the best performing industry for recycling products, recycling 2 tonnes every second of every day. This is in complete reversal to electronic products waste, which has sky rocketed globally to 25-50 million tonnes of waste being generated every year.