Bleaching method

Labelling 

Check that there is a valid license for the product in question. This can be checked on each website: EU Ecolabel, Nordic Swan Ecolabel.

Self-declaration and certificate

If the requirement has been verified with a self-declaration and a certificate that TCF pulp was used, check if the certificate is still valid

Self-declaration and calculation

If the requirement has been verified with a self-declaration and calculation, request a current calculation from the supplier.

Self-declaration verified by an accredited verification body

If a verified self-declaration is used to prove that the requirement is fulfilled, request the supplier’s self-declaration, including documentation showing that the requirement is met. The self-declaration shall be verified by a verification body accredited for the task in accordance with ISO / IEC 17029 or equivalent standard.

Please note that the requirement is not appropriate to set for archival resistant paper, since it consists mostly of textile fibers and possibly a small amount of pulp.

There are currently a limited number of accredited verification bodies for ISO/IEC 17029 (Conformity assessment - General principles and requirements for validation and verification bodies) as it is a relatively new standard. This may change, especially if the demand for verifying compliance in this way increases. More information about the standard and accredited verification bodies can be found on Swedac's website.

The amount of chlorine compounds are measured and expressed as AOX (Adsorbable Organic Halogens). Many chlorine compounds are difficult to degrade, are fat-soluble and stored in the fatty tissues of organisms and passed upward in the food chain. As such, they are associated with serious health and environmental effects.

Modern bleaching methods for paper pulp are the TCF (Totally Chlorine Free) and ECF (Elemental Chlorine Free) methods. TCF means that the pulp is bleached completely without chlorine, therefore this bleaching method does not give AOX emissions. ECF means that the pulp is bleached with chlorine dioxide. This bleaching method produces AOX emissions, but significantly lower emissions than chlorine gas bleaching.

Chlorine is no longer used for pulp bleaching within the EU. However, since chlorine bleaching may be used in other places in the world, it is important to set this requirement.

Emissions of AOX can be stated either as emissions from each individual pulp used for production of printing and copying paper or as a weighted average of the total pulp emissions used for production of printing and copying paper. In this criterion, requirements are set for emissions from each individual mass.

The version date indicates when the sustainability criterion was created or last updated. Last reviewed dated tells when we last checked that the sustainability criterion still is relevant.