148-152 Miller Street
West Melbourne
VIC 3003
7th August 2008
MEDIA RELEASE
Woolworths Dumps Asia Pulp & Paper
– Or Does It?
Woolworths has today announced it is reviewing its supply arrangements for its Select Brand tissue products.
In the announcement, Woolworths refers indirectly to the credibility problems it faced over the last year
because of its close relationship with the discredited and unsustainable manufacturer, Asia Pulp & Paper.
In light of this announcement, the Wake Up Woolworths! campaign is calling on Woolworths to immediately
announce it is permanently ending its relationship with Asia Pulp & Paper. In the US, some of the major
companies like Staples, Office Depot and Walmart who have dumped APP have gone as far as to announce
they will no longer do business with them. Tim Woods, spokesperson for the Wake Up Woolworths!
campaign said:
“Woolworths’ concession of the problem its relationship with Asia Pulp & Paper has created for them is
welcome. However, this announcement is still very vague. It leaves open the possibility that as soon as
they think the coast is clear, they will go back to selling unsustainable product made by Asia Pulp &
Paper.
“If Woolworths is dumping APP once and for all, it should say so and remove the doubt.”
Woolworths has previously gone back to APP products when they thought the coast was clear after original
criticism of the relationship and bogus sustainability claims on product labelling caused it to withdraw Select
Brand tissue products from the shelves.
“Woolworths also has to announce that it will not deal with the many satellites of Asia Pulp & Paper to
assist them to ‘launder’ illegal or unsustainable timber by routing it through different operations and
countries.
“Woolworths must cease lending its name and reputation to lousy products and unsustainable
companies like Asia Pulp & Paper. Woolworths should immediately cease selling the unsustainable
Select Brand paper products in its supermarkets, not just wait until it has a new supplier.”
Commenting on the next stage of Woolworths’ sourcing for its Select Brand and other paper products, Mr
Woods said:
“In setting the standards it will use to assess the sustainability of imported paper products, Woolworths
needs to be completely transparent before it commits to any new supplier.
“Transparency is the only way for Woolworths to demonstrate that it is genuine in its sustainability
intentions and after so much pressure, it’s the least consumers and shareholders should expect.
Media comments – Tim Woods – 0419 352 869
The Wake Up Woolworths campaign is funded primarily by the Pulp & Paper Workers’ Branch of the Construction,
Forestry, Mining & Energy Union
NEWS 
