Walking the Talk

Spicers is walking the talk on sustainability. From providing the highest standard, certified eco-friendly paper products to responsible environmental management, this company certainly deserves their Enviro-Mark Gold certification.

Paper merchant Spicers has traditionally serviced the commercial print market, but over recent years have diversified through acquisitions and growth. With four branches across the country, they have operations as distributors of paper products and industrial packaging at their core. Spicers manage over 16,000 square metres of warehouse space and deliver over 37,000 tonnes of product each year.

Paper ≠ Bad

Despite common misconceptions, Spicers General Manager Mark Lee, asserts that paper is a sustainable product. Certifications from organisations such as the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) of which Spicers have both, indicate that a product has satisfied rigorous checks and has been fully audited. Every step of the way in the chain of custody, each company is benchmarked against the same guidelines. Mark likens sustainable forestry to mowing your lawn; the trees grow, are cut down and made into paper, then more trees are grown. “We view our certified paper products as sustainable and environmentally friendly,” he says.

There is a stringent process around the environment; the trees are sourced through certified forestry. The water used in the manufacturing process to turn trees into pulp is reused throughout production. It is then cleaned to higher quality standards and returned to the rivers, better than when it came out.

These certifications are important to Spicers because there is systematic proof that they are environmentally-produced products. End users can be certain that products with the certification logos, have gone through the strict processes to meet the guidelines. Veronica Pettigrew, Compliance Manager, explains, “We have the option to purchase from mills that aren’t certified, but we choose to purchase from mills that are, so we are assured they have met the standards and we can provide that product to our customers.”

Compostable range

Kylie Taylor, National Manager of Industrial Packaging, cites the environmental good Spicers are doing with the paper side of the business as being the driving force behind finding alternatives for some of their packaging. They have bought in a new range of compostable bin liners and are working to increase their eco-friendly range in as many ways as possible.

One of the larger barriers to overcome is public perception and knowledge of compostable products. Spicers are taking care with how they launch and are focusing a lot of time and energy on getting the story out about compostables. They want consumers to understand the benefits and the difference between plastics and compostables. Kylie says, “People want to make a difference, they just don’t understand the differences between all options. Why am I paying more and is there a benefit? Yes, there is.”

Kylie further explains that while there are commercial compost facilities, it is difficult getting the products there. “People can simply bury them in the garden, it doesn’t have to be in a compost bin. Their bin liners will compost within 90 days and even quicker in ideal conditions. Even if it goes to landfill, it’s still going to break down. It will just take a bit longer. It also won’t leave anything behind, whereas some degradables will.”

Spicers are working to develop more compostable products with a point of difference while being better for the environment. Mark believes that while there are some compostable products out there, there is still opportunity in that space. “The sky is the limit,” he says, “if you look at anything plastic, such as pallet wrap and food containers, you can make something similar as a compostable version. It all comes down to achieving a viable cost.”

Reducing environmental impacts

Spicers were the first paper merchant in New Zealand to have Enviro-Mark Gold Certification, which signifies they have a robust environmental management system in place. It relates to operations from a business point of view and not to products sold. “Anything we have an influence over, the aspects we create, we want to have control over the impact it has,” explains Veronica.

One aspect is a large amount of packaging waste. Spicers work with service providers to whom they sell back their paper waste and also take back a waste stream they have passed on to customers.

Transport solutions are another area of focus. Spicers prefer to use sea freight and trains rather than trucks when they need to transport product across the country. This has given them a cost saving but also significantly reduced their carbon footprint.

In their premises, the company is in the process of changing energy sources. Switching to LED lights dropped their power usage by 40%. They are looking forward to having a high standard of sustainable fit out.

Getting staff on-board

Management found that by putting systems in place and communicating them well, it wasn’t a struggle to engage the whole team. It did take time for everyone to understand what they were supposed to do. However, Spicers have a high rate of staff retention and their systems have become intrinsic behaviour. Mark explains that it is also important to talk about it across the team, not just among managers, “It needs to be consistent across the business at all levels and locations.”

“People coming on board copy that behaviour; it’s just how we do it,” says Veronica. “It turns into a culture.” Everyone eats together in the same lunchroom and if someone is seen putting their rubbish in the wrong place, they are told where the recycling bin is, “It’s not a telling off, it’s a friendly comment.” An hourlong environmental session is included in the induction process with new staff, so they are aware of expectations from the beginning.

Spicers have found success by making it easy for staff to do the right thing. There are no rubbish bins under desks and staff have been trained to use central recycling bins. As a result, everyone now recycles their waste because they just have to. Paper-only bins are under each desk. “We give them the ability to do the recycling, we don’t make it difficult for them,” says Veronica.

Spicers have also implemented a food waste composting system to compliment other recycling in the office. “We try very hard to walk the talk,” says Kylie.

One of New Zealand’s largest paper merchants, Spicers have been in New Zealand for over 100 years and are located at 1 Lady Fisher Drive, Highbrook Business Park.

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