Paper advocacy group Two Sides has announced a significant relaunch of its successful ‘Love Paper’ campaign. Love Paper is part of a global initiative to increase consumer awareness of the sustainability of print, paper and paper packaging.

The new campaign comes with a brand new identity, newly-designed print ads, a new consumer-focused website (www.lovepaper.org) featuring a paper ‘fact file’ as well as inspiring blogs and stories, a captivating animated video, plus many new digital tools to help reach and inform wider audiences.

The Love Paper campaign relaunches at a time of unprecedented media and public debate about sustainable products, materials and packaging.

As consumers and brands become more conscious of the environmental impacts of the products and packaging we use; paper and paper packaging are increasingly recognised for their unique sustainable features: made from renewable raw materials, recyclable and biodegradable.

Greg Selfe, Country Manager for Two Sides UK, says, “Never has there been such widespread attention on the environmental credentials of the products and materials we use. The plastics debate, ignited by Sir David Attenborough’s Blue Planet 2, has fuelled a seismic shift in both public and business attitudes towards sustainability. This debate has led more people to appreciate that paper can be an environmentally-sound choice for reading materials, communications and packaging solutions, but there is still a significant underestimation of just how sustainable paper and paper packaging is.”

A 2019 survey commissioned by Two Sides found that a staggering 63% of European consumers believe European forests are shrinking in size. In fact, these forests, which provide 90% of the fresh fibre used by the European pulp and paper industry, have been growing by an area equivalent to 1,500 football pitches every day. The survey also revealed that only a fifth of consumers are aware of paper and paper packaging’s exceptionally high recycling rate of 72%.

Despite some of these misconceptions about paper’s impact on the environment, surveys commissioned by Two Sides highlight a steady improvement in consumer attitudes. For instance, in 2016 just 5% of UK consumers believed European forests were growing. By 2019, this had increased to 11%.

Public perceptions about paper’s recycling rate have also been improving. In 2016 only 8% of UK adults surveyed understood the European paper recycling rate was over 60%. In 2019, this has increased significantly to 17%.

Selfe continues, “Although there is still a long way to go, it’s fantastic to see perceptions of paper continue to improve. We are confident the Love Paper campaign has played a significant part in this. Since its origin, the Love Paper campaign has reached tens of millions of consumers in the UK alone. This has been thanks to the support of newspaper and magazine publishers donating millions of pounds of advertising space. The Love Paper ads appear regularly in leading titles including The Times, The Sun, Evening Standard, Metro, Daily Mirror, Daily Mail, Financial Times, The Economist, and dozens of popular consumer and B2B magazines.”

Publisher support

Neil Jagger, chief operating officer of Reach PLC, the UK’s largest newspaper publisher, commented, “We are delighted to support the Love Paper campaign. Our industry and suppliers are very focused on environmental sustainability and we are achieving a high degree of success. By supporting Love Paper, we are helping to educate our readers that paper is an environmentally sound choice for reading.”

Doug Wills, Managing Editor of the Evening Standard, says, “From using recycled newsprint and working with sustainable forestry, to campaigning for green lifestyle changes … the Evening Standard is proud to be part of the newspaper industry in protecting the environment. The Love Paper campaign helps us share this great story with our readers.”

Even in today’s digital world, paper remains unique in its ability to touch our lives. Paper is renewable, recyclable and remains the most enjoyable way to read.1

To find out more about the Love Paper campaign:

Website: www.lovepaper.org 

Facebook: @LovePaperUK

Twitter: @LovePaperUK

Instagram: @LovePaperCampaign