Kinko's Rises Closer to the Top

The Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has hailed Kinko’s new forest-based product procurement policy as one of the most effective and meaningful company policies to protect endangered forests and end old growth destruction.

Kinko’s developed the new policy – which establishes stringent vendor requirements and recycled content standards – with input from prominent environmental groups and suppliers, including RAN and International Paper.

Six years ago, Kinko’s announced it would not knowingly purchase paper or wood products derived from old-growth, endangered or high-conservation value forests. Their new policy expands on this initiative. Kinko’s new vendor requirements are believed to be the first time a company has:

* incorporated firm guidelines for the forest management practices of its suppliers and

* engaged its vendors and the environmental community to ensure the company does not align with suppliers that log or distribute products from old growth or endangered forests, convert native forests to tree plantations, or use genetically modified organisms. Suppliers must also guarantee and document that none of their supply sources or operations result in the logging of old growth or endangered forests.

Kinko’s long-term goal is to increase the average percentage of post-consumer recycled content paper it uses to 30% with goals set annually and usage tracked quarterly. Kinko’s goal for 2003 is to increase its post-consumer fiber use by 5%, from current levels of 14-19%. The policy also provides standards for identifying the use of alternative, non-wood based materials and technologies to reduce paper consumption and waste in its production processes.

In addition to its own culture and history, Kinko’s policy is also driven by needs of commercial customers, such as Bank of America, that increasingly favor sustainable business practices. “The environmental practices and policies of our key suppliers is of great interest and value to Bank of America and supports our company’s environmental commitment,” said Robert Kee, SVP and Senior Supplier Management at Bank of America. “We expect our suppliers to be environmental leaders.”

Other sustainable initiatives underway at Kinko’s include renewable energy purchases, energy conservation, use of recycled products, incorporating green building concepts into its retail locations, product stewardship guidelines for suppliers, and waste minimizing and recycling programs. Kinko’s was one of the first U.S. companies to commit to significant green power purchasers. Recently, they announced the company will buy 37% more green power for 66 additional Kinko’s locations in California, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington.

www.kinkos.com