Kimberly-Clark points to recycling efforts in sustainability report

Dallas-based consumer products company Kimberly-Clark Corp. has reported its progress made in 2017 toward its Sustainability 2022 strategy. Among the highlights pointed to by the firm on its sustainability website is the use of 450,000 tons of recycled fiber in 2017 in the manufacturing of what Kimberly-Clark calls its “Professional” (away from home) tissue products. The firm says that amounts to 73 percent of its feedstock for that product line.

“We continue to make strides in our efforts to create positive social and environmental change,” says Thomas J. Falk, Kimberly-Clark’s chairman and CEO. “That’s why we are committed to an ambitious set of sustainability goals that will have a lasting impact on the people we serve around the world and the communities we touch.”

The company says its Global Sustainability Report is organized and presented in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Sustainability Reporting Standards. The firm says its key outcomes include:

• Forests & Fiber: sourced 89 percent of the fiber used in tissue products from environmentally preferred sources, including Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified virgin fiber and recycled fiber;
• Waste & Recycling: further increased the amount of waste diverted from landfills (includes both manufacturing and non-manufacturing facilities) to 95 percent;
• Energy & Climate: lowered its absolute greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 18 percent (from a 2005 baseline) through what it calls improved energy efficiency and increased use of alternative energy sources;
• Supply Chain: invested in watershed analyses, as well as water treatment and recycling technologies, to further reduce its water consumption in water stressed areas; and
• Social Impact: in the first two years of the strategy, the lives of 4.3 million people in need worldwide have benefited through programs that increase access to sanitation, help children thrive and empower women and girls, according to the company.

Kimberly-Clark says it has made what it calls a major commitment to annually purchase approximately 1 million megawatt hours of wind energy, the equivalent of about one-third of the electricity needs of Kimberly-Clark’s North American manufacturing operations.

K-C Professional’s RightCycle Program has reclaimed and recycled more than 600 metric tons of non-hazardous lab, cleanroom and industrial waste including apparel, gloves and safety eyewear since 2013, according to the firm.

The company also says it also plans to drive further gains toward its goal of diverting at least 150,000 metric tons of waste through programs that reduce waste through design, or divert it from low value disposal outlets to higher value, beneficial uses.

 “Our challenge is to eliminate waste in our processes, products and packaging, while also exceeding customers’ expectations with safe and effective products that can be properly managed after use,” says Lisa Morden, Kimberly-Clark’s vice president of safety and sustainability. “By adopting a systems-based approach with key partners, we can play a role in enabling the circular economy, one which is restorative and creates value.”

Earlier this year, Kimberly-Clark joined the Closed Loop Ocean initiative in an effort to help prevent plastic leaking into the world’s oceans, and the firm says it will continue to promote labelling programs such as How2Recycle in the United States; the On-Pack Recycling Label in the United Kingdom; Love NZ Soft Plastic Recycling in New Zealand; and REDcycle in Australia. Those programs are designed to provide simple, consistent recycling or disposal instructions for consumers.

“I am proud of our dedicated employees around the world – and our many partners, suppliers and customers – who are part of achieving these goals,” states Morden. “Through sustainable practices that support a healthy planet, we can build stronger communities and ensure our business thrives for decades to come.”

Kimberly-Clark supplies non-food consumer products to more than 175 countries. Its brands include Huggies, Kleenex, Scott, Kotex, Cottonelle, Poise, Depend, Andrex, Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Intimus, Neve, Plenitud, Viva and WypAll.