SUSTAINABILITY FROM THE FOREST TO THE FACTORY
The wood packaging industry has always been a leader in reusing and recycling efforts and in the 1980s, it gave birth to a large and robust recycling industry. Often touted as the environmentalist’s choice, trees are rarely harvested with future wood packaging production in mind, despite the fact that it plays a vital role in the maintenance of healthy forests and communities. In fact, a lot of materials used to produce wood packaging are generally unusable otherwise.
Founded in 1967, the Canadian Wood Pallet and Container Association (CWPCA) works on behalf of its 164 members to promote and support the wood packaging industry in Canada. An important contributor to overall forest product sustainability, the wood packaging industry makes use of and provides a market for the off-grade forest products produced by the lumber mills.
The association also acts as an alternative service delivery organization to administer phytosanitary — plant health — inspection services to the hundreds of clients who participate in the Canadian Heat-Treated Wood Products Certification Program on behalf of the Canadian government.
Wood is Nature’s Packaging
Recent studies in the United States indicate that almost all of the wood packaging that is produced is reused, recycled, and repurposed throughout its useful life, resulting in a 95 percent landfill avoidance rate.
In 2015, Nature’s Packaging, a joint sustainability initiative between member volunteers of the CWPCA, the National Wood Pallet and Container Association, and the Western Pallet Association was born. The initiative serves to deliver accurate messaging supporting why wood is an excellent and sustainable choice to facilitate the shipment of goods.