Fedrigoni and Klabin Partnership: Sustainable Pulp-to-Paper Value Chain

Fedrigoni and Klabin have built a partnership over many years in which the commercial
relationship and the sustainability agenda have grown together, sharing common
values and goals. Klabin grows the plantations and produces the pulp in Brazil, while
Fedrigoni turns that pulp into specialty papers in Europe. Two companies, one value
chain, and two sustainability agendas that increasingly answer the same questions and
have been recognized by CDP, EcoVadis and S&P Global CSA, where both companies
rank among the leading performers in their sectors.

Where the fiber comes from
It begins in southern Brazil. Klabin’s pulp comes entirely from planted eucalyptus and
pine forests in Paraná, Santa Catarina and São Paulo, thousands of kilometers from the
Amazon rainforest. Conserved native forests account for 41% of the Company’s total
forest base of 911,000 hectares. But the two are not kept apart: Klabin plants in a
mosaic, so that corridors of native vegetation run through the productive areas and
connect them, helping biodiversity thrive. Backing this is a commitment that no native
forest will be converted into plantation, and none deforested. All the fibre is certified,
and chain of custody keeps that verifiable at every step, the same traceability that now
underpins compliance with the EU Deforestation Regulation.

Where the fiber goes next
Fedrigoni’s purpose is to elevate creativity. In practice, this means creating specialty
papers that meet very high standards in both aesthetic and technical performance, with
a wide range of weights, colours and textures that turn a creative vision into a tangible
product. Innovation is what brings these dimensions together: a strategic approach that
adds value across all our businesses while supporting sustainability. Ecodesign and
circular economy principles guide product development. End-of-life recyclability is
certified: a decisive factor in plastic-to-paper applications and in meeting the
requirements now being introduced by the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.

A common path on decarbonization
The carbon footprint of a specialty paper is determined upstream and downstream
alike. Both companies hold emission reduction targets validated by the Science Based
Targets initiative, and both are acting on them inside their own operations. At Klabin,
more than 93% of the energy matrix is renewable, generated largely from the biomass
residues of pulp production itself. At Fedrigoni, biomethane has recently been
introduced across all Italian mills, partially replacing natural gas in the production
process. Two interventions at two ends of the same chain, with a single combined
effect on the carbon footprint of the product that reaches the end user.

What it means for brand owners and designers
Brand owners and designers select their suppliers carefully, and what they are
selecting is no longer only a material. This partnership gives them transparency along a
chain that can be documented end to end, from the plantation to the paper, and
reductions in environmental impact that count towards their own sustainability targets.
Two companies part of the same value chain, sharing the same ambition and striving for
the same excellence to support our industry.