Cradle to Cradle award for Lessebo

Cradle to Cradle is an approach for a continuous and consistent circular economy. You could also say that it is a vision with the goal of reducing the impact on nature, both with raw materials but also in terms of water stewardship and social responsibility.

The Cradle to Cradle should make a radical way of thinking in cycles starting with product design, manufacture, and use. The principle, which can also be perceived as a philosophy, was designed in the late 1990’s by the German chemist Michael Braungart and the American architect William McDonough. Cradle to Cradle products are therefore those that can either be returned to biological cycles as biological nutrients or that can be kept continuously in technical cycles as technical nutrients.

The Lessebo Mill is the only paper producer to be awarded GOLD certification, which was awarded this month.  Lessebo is a town in a remote area of southern Sweden called Småland. and is surrounded by a rugged terrain full of boulders and dense forests between large shallow lakes. Bruk is the Swedish word for mill, hence the name of the mill, Lessebo Bruk.
Founded in the middle of the 17th century as an iron mill, it was granted permission by the local government to produce paper in 1693. It should go without saying that all paper was made by hand at this point in time and it wasn't until the 19th century that paper machines were invented. It is also worth noting that the mill still Handmade Paper studio ...where I have actually made paper!

Lessebo Bruk is a mill with complete focus on forest based products with a modern product mix of graphical papers, dissolving cellulose and energy - in fact their power plant heats the town swimming pool as well as a great many of the houses in the town!

We have been working with Lessebo for nearly thirty years and I have written about their paper on this blog before. So it certainly wasn't a surprise to me that this Swedish mill should be awarded Gold certification and the fact that their close competitor, Arctic Paper has only achieved Bronze certification for their Munken papers has probably raised a wry smile at the mill!

If you would like a swatch of the Lessebo Design range, just drop me an email: justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.c2ccertified.org/

https://lessebopaper.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 19.03.2021