Press release - 24 September, 2004
Greenpeace today commended the efforts of Chilean author, Isabel Allende, and her Spanish publisher, Random House Mondadori, to help save the world's last remaining ancient forests. Mondadori has printed Allende's new book Forest of the Pygmies youth edition on 100% recycled paper.
"Printing a book about the Pygmy peoples, who are forest dwellers, on ancient forest friendly paper is very appropriate," said Judy Rodrigues of Greenpeace. "Ancient forests, like the ones the Pygmies rely on for their way of life, are at threat from illegal and destructive logging due to the global demand for timber and paper products. Random House Mondadori has shown how publishers can play their part in protecting the world's ancient forests by using ancient forest friendly paper for this book."
Other efforts by the Spanish publisher include an adult edition of Allende's book on 30% paper certified to the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council™(FSC®). Random House Mondadori has committed to print all its youth books under its Montena label on recycled paper by 2005. This is the first time that a major Spanish publisher has made great first step to use an ancient forest friendly book paper (1)
This positive step by Random House Mondadori is the result of collaboration with Greenpeace's Book Campaign that aims to encourage the book publishing industry to stop sourcing paper linked to ancient forest destruction and to start developing 'ancient forest friendly' solutions such as the use of recycled paper and/or virgin fibre certified to the standards of the FSC®.
Random House Mondadori has followed the example set by Random House Canada and 66 other Canadian publishers who have made formal commitments to phase out ancient forest fibres from their books. Since 2001, 4.5 million books in Canada have been printed on recycled paper made from post consumer waste and 9 ancient forest friendly papers have been developed for the Canadian market.
"Greenpeace is now calling on the global publisher of Random House, Bertlesmann as well as all other Random House subsidiaries to follow the example set by their Canadian and Spanish counter parts," concluded Rodrigues.
In the last few months, Italian publisher Einaudi has published 4 books on 100% recycled paper as a result of the Greenpeace book campaign and 14 Dutch publishers, representing 75% of the fiction market in the Netherlands, have committed to using ancient forest friendly book papers. The UK publisher Bloomsbury has also made initial steps by printing the paperback edition of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on a part recycled paper.
Notes: (1) Ancient forest friendly paper is defined as recycled paper with a high post-consumer waste content and/or pulp from Forest Stewardship Council™ accredited timber. (2) 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' was printed on paper made from 10% post consumer waste recycled paper. The adult version of the book was printed on 20% post consumer waste recycled paper.