xpedx is First North American Printing Paper Distributor to Receive Both SFI and FSC Chain-Of-Custody Certifications

LOVELAND, Ohio, Jan. 30 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- xpedx today announced that it has received both Sustainable Forestry Initiative(R) (SFI) and Forest Stewardship Council(R) (FSC) chain-of-custody certifications. It is the first North American paper distributor to be certified in both standards.

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The new xpedx certifications bring U.S. commercial and in-plant printers an important business advantage: printers can now fulfill growing customer demand for third-party certified printing papers. The two certification bodies in the United States are SFI and FSC. xpedx offers all SFI-certified papers as well as FSC-certified coated papers and writing, text and cover papers.

The xpedx SFI and FSC chain-of-custody certifications allow printers to prove key environmental stewardship and paper-handling compliance to customers who want or need this. xpedx does business with the vast majority of printers in the U.S. and its chain-of-custody certifications apply to all of its U.S. distribution centers, retail stores, as well as sales via xpedx.com.

"With our new dual, national chain-of-custody certification, U.S. printers can now be assured they have a dependable supply of certified papers to meet growing demand," said Jeff Higgins, corporate Director of Marketing Services for xpedx.

Fiber and chain-of-custody certification is a high-priority issue today in commercial printing, paper distribution, paper manufacturing and commercial forestry. The issue is driven by print customers seeking to align their social and environmental philosophy with their purchasing practices.

Chain of custody is the process of tracking and recording the possession and transfer of certified wood and fiber from the forest of origin, through the stages of production, to the end user. If any entity along this path is not third-party certified, the paper specifier, printer or print customer cannot claim the papers are certified and they cannot use the SFI or FSC logo.

xpedx, North America's largest distributor of printing papers, is a critical link that moves certified paper grades through the supply chain to printers. xpedx has long been one of the largest providers of post-consumer waste content and recycled printing papers in North America and now offers the greatest variety of SFI- and FSC-certified papers in the U.S. xpedx said it will continue to add new grades as they come to market.

xpedx received chain-of-custody certification this month from Bureau Veritas Certification, Jamestown, NY, which has served more than 70,000 companies in 60 nations. Recognized by 30 accreditation bodies across the globe, it provides a full range of quality, environmental, health and safety, social and security related auditing, verification and training for companies.

xpedx, working with Bureau Veritas Certification, said it will also facilitate certification for printers who would like to become certified. Scores of printers across the U.S. have received chain-of-custody certification and many more have expressed interest in obtaining it. xpedx said it will be releasing details on the program soon.

About SFI

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative(R) (SFI) program is a comprehensive system of principles, objectives and performance measures developed by professional foresters, conservationists and scientists, among others that combines the perpetual growing and harvesting of trees with the long-term protection of wildlife, plants, soil and water quality. The SFI Standard (SFIS) spells out the requirements of compliance with the program. The SFIS is based on nine principles that address economic, environmental, cultural and legal issues, in addition to a commitment to continuously improve sustainable forest management.

On January 1, 2007, the SFI program became a fully independent forest certification program. The multi-stakeholder Board of Directors of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Inc. is now the sole governing body over the SFI Standard and all aspects of the program. The diversity of the board members reflects the variety of interests in the forestry community.

Of its 15 board members, five are the CEOs of non-profit environmental groups; five board members are the CEOs of forest products companies; and the remaining board members represent stakeholders from the broader forestry community. Through the balance of these stakeholders, the Board can ensure that the SFI Program is protecting the economic, environmental and social needs of our forests and communities.

About FSC

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is a non-profit organization devoted to encouraging the responsible management of the world's forests. FSC sets high standards that ensure forestry is practiced in an environmentally responsible, socially beneficial, and economically viable way.

Landowners and companies that sell timber or forest products seek certification as a way to verify to consumers that they have practiced forestry consistent with FSC standards. Independent, certification organizations are accredited by FSC to carry out assessments of forest management to determine if standards have been met. These certifiers also verify that companies claiming to sell FSC-certified products have tracked their supply back to FSC-certified sources. This chain-of-custody certification assures that consumers can trust the FSC label. FSC-US, based in Washington, D.C., is the U.S. chapter of FSC International, based in Bonn, Germany.

About xpedx and its businesses

xpedx, an International Paper company , is North America's largest marketer and distributor of printing papers and graphics supplies and equipment. It is also a major distributor of packaging supplies and equipment and facility supplies and equipment. The company has more than 7,000 employees in 250 locations in North America. Customers include commercial printers, publishers, manufacturers, retailers, facility managers and companies across many industry segments.

In addition to delivering the world's largest offering of printing papers from a single source, xpedx provides graphics professionals with advanced digital prepress equipment, hardware and graphics software, Ryobi presses and digital workflows, color management tools, finishing, bindery and packaging systems. xpedx also offers detailed operations analysis, advice and financing to help make a customer's printing operations more efficient and profitable.

Other xpedx owned-and-operated businesses include New York-based Bulkley Dunton; Lenexa, KS-based xpedx Printing Technologies/Ryobi; the xpedx National Technology Center (NTC), a pre-press laboratory and demonstration center based in metropolitan Cleveland, Ohio, as well as a network of 135 retail paper stores in 32 states that operate under the names xpedx Paper & Graphics, xpedx Paper Store, If It's Paper and Arvey Paper & Office Products. In Mexico, xpedx owns and operates 20 distribution centers and retail stores. xpedx operates one of the largest business-to-business e-commerce sites, xpedx.com, as well as suiteshoponline.com for graphics professionals.

Editor's Note: xpedx is always spelled all lower case. Contacts:

xpedx: Jeff Higgins, xpedx Director of Marketing Services, 513-965-2923; Lisa Jonas, xpedx Marketing Communications Manager, 513-965-2938; Press: Erik Godchaux, Media Strategy Group, 608-256-4540