Andrex is to become the first major toilet tissue brand to boast certification from the Forest Stewardship Council , as part of a new green sourcing drive from brand owner Kimberly-Clark, The Grocer can reveal.

From next month its core brand, Puppies on a Roll, Quilts and Aloe Vera will all carry the FSC stamp prominently, while Longer Lasting will follow from September.

The initiative follows a review of the environmental impact of its sourcing policies, on which future policy will be based.

Started in 2006, the project independently assessed the impact of using recycled versus virgin fibre as the core material for its tissue products.

It concluded that recycled fibre was not the preferred eco material, but both had their own benefits and drawbacks. Sustainable management of both types of fibre would therefore be key, said a spokeswoman.

Kimberly-Clark plans to increase its use of FSC-certified fibre over the next 10 years. However, it said it could not exclusively rely on it due to limits on

world supply.

The move comes as Greenpeace stepped up its long-running campaign against Kimberly-Clark, buying ad billboards along the route travelled by its US executives in Texas.

The Kleercut campaign calls for the company to use more recycled fibres and halt its practice of “wiping away ancient forests”.

Last year, Kimberly-Clark soft-launched its FSC certification across the Kleenex brand.

The FSC initiative, which will be promoted in-store, follows an eco drive by rival brand Velvet.

The SCA-owned toilet tissue range became the first brand in the category to adopt the wildlife charity WWF’s logo.

The tie-up was centred around educating kids about green issues [The Grocer, 15 September,

2007].

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