What is green printing really about when we think &ldquogreen printing,&rdquo the terms recycled, fsc certified, and soy inks come to mind, but is there more are these really enough one ton of recycled paper still consumes up to four trees and 18,000 btus of energy, creates up to two tons of solid waste, and creates thousands of gallons of contaminated wastewater. Certainly fsc, sfi, and pefc are important designations and diverting pulp production from irresponsibly managed forests is critical, but at what point will we begin to tip the balance of fsc paper production versus fsc forestry growth toward the negativebrand owners, printers, and consumers should focus on the &lsquogreen issues&rsquo that are going to matter most going forward &ndash sustainability sourcing print and packaging from more abundant, renewable resources and carbon footprint. This is the real issue that brand owners and marketers need to be concerned with. Using recycled postconsumer waste papers, certainly preserve most significant carbon storage resources but at what point will forests&rsquo carbon storage capacity fail to keep up with our carbon producing activities pulp production and processing of recycled fibers are the real culprits here each requiring a significant amount of energy. This massive consumption contributes to an enormous amount of co2 emitted into our atmosphere. The first step to creating and promotingmarketing a brand&rsquos sustainable packaging is to create and publish a solid ecovision. Start by taking a look at your peers&rsquo and competitors&rsquo websites and those of companies that have been on this path for some time. Any ecoconscious brand will have an ecovision andor eco mission statement. Your own statement should include which aspects of sustainability and environmental stewardship are important to your company. From here you&rsquoll need to spell out your environmentalsustainability goals and how you plan to get there. If source reduction, leanefficient manufacturing production processes, or sourcing more ecofriendly packaging materials is part of your plan, then make sure to say so. So what&rsquos next you can start by educating yourself and your customers about the real threats to a cleaner planet carbon emissions and depletion of nonrenewable natural resources. Stop &lsquobuying into&rsquo the oversimplified &lsquorecycle, reuse, renew&rsquo mantra and dig deeper educate yourself about these concerns. Using recycled packaging and asking consumers to &lsquoplease recycle&rsquo isn&rsquot enough, folks dig deeper, learn and focus on the right green message
