The European Federation of Wooden Pallet and Packaging Manufacturers (FEFPEB) has announced that it is to launch a new public relations campaign to promote wood as the raw material of choice for pallets and packaging.
Under the heading 'Packaging from Nature', the initiative will communicate the economic and environmental benefits of timber use in packaging and pellets, particularly when compared with alternative materials such as plastics.
Active across European countries represented by FEFPEB including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey and the UK, the campaign is funded by FEFPEB members, pallet pools and associate members.
As part of the promotion, the campaign will be in contact with major industry publications and online news sites, targeting packaging users, decision makers and NGOs, while a website has been set up to outline timber's benefits for the environment as well as other facts, media resources and downloads.
'The launch of a Europe-wide campaign is great news for the European timber packaging and pallets industry,' said Gil Covey, FEFPEC president. 'Timber is the first choice in the manufacture of these essential products because it is better for the environment, is less expensive and sustains many more jobs – at least half a million in Europe alone – than any other packaging material.'
Covey noted that some €40bn worth of product is moved on wooden packaging and pallets every year in Europe, although the industry faces increasing competition from plastics and other materials.
'The Packaging from Nature campaign gives us a universal message and means of communicating it in countries represented by FEFPEB, through news and contact with European press,' he added. 'We are encouraging our members o make full use of this activity, and to use the logo and link to the website to make sure their customers are aware of the compelling environmental and economic reasons for using timber.'
