June Global Pulp Deliveries Fall

Global pulp deliveries edged down by 0.8% to 3.651 million tonnes in June, down from 3.682 million tonnes in May, according to Pulp and Paper Products Council (PPPC) data.

Shipments were 6.0% higher than the year-earlier period, up from 3.445 million tonnes in June 2012.

The shipment-to-capacity ratio rose from 91% in May to 92% last month.

Bleached softwood kraft (BSK) pulp shipments inched down from 1.885 million tonnes in May to 1.841 million tonnes in June, while bleached hardwood kraft (BHK) pulp deliveries increased from 1.670 million tonnes in May to 1.690 million tonnes last month.

India's Paper Industry to Grow at 6-8% Per Year

http://www.paperage.com/2013news/07_24_2013india_paper_industry_report.html

With a total consumption of 11.60 million metric tons (MT), the Indian paper industry accounted for less than 3% of global paper demand. The per capita consumption of paper amounts to around 10 kilogram (Kg), which is significantly lower than world average of around 58 Kg and even the consumption levels of some of the other developing nations.

While the market size and per capita consumption are relatively low, they have exhibited a rising trend over past several years from 7.3 kg in 2008 to 10-11 kg in 2012. The total paper consumption has grown at a CAGR of around 6% over last decade with none of the last ten years showing a decline in consumption demand.

Graphic Packaging Raises Paperboard Price

http://www.graphicpkg.com/default.aspx

Graphic Packaging has informed customers it will increase prices on all its solid unbleached sulfate (SUS) paperboard, also called coated unbleached kraft (CUK), by $50/ton effective with shipments on or after Sept. 1, according to industry sources.

The increase applies to Graphic Packaging's Omni-Kote, Pearl-Kote and Aqua-Kote SUS grades.
MeadWestvaco last week set a $50 price increase on its coated natural kraft (CNK) also called CUK effective Sept. 1.

AAM Approves Streamlined Audit Program

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/aam-approves-streamlined-audit-program#.UfAN7VOYyKw

The Alliance for Audited Media has announced one step that will ease the burden on some publishers now, and another that may do the same in the future.
AAM has approved an optional streamlined audit program for publishers with circulations of less than 100,000. Publishers would be able to do without certain metrics like average price, average edition circulation, trending analysis and geographic breakdowns-metrics that Mark Wachowicz, senior vice president of sales and marketing for AAM, says are unnecessary for smaller publications.
"The new program has eliminated a number of reporting elements for that segment of the membership," he says. "That segment of the membership doesn't really utilize any of those categories, and more importantly, the endemic advertisers, which is the vast makeup of their advertising component, don't use any of that information."
Members opting for the reduced two-page reports will see a cost savings of 20 to 30 percent, Wachowicz notes, although custom add-ons will available at additional cost. Publishers will see additional time and labor savings in reporting fewer categories, he says.

Consumers Soon Able to Opt-Out Mobile Ads

http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/ad-industry-expands-privacy-self-regulation-mobile-151386
While the World Wide Consortium sputters and spits trying to negotiate a Do Not Track standard to protect consumer privacy online, the digital advertising business is forging ahead with expanding its self-regulation program to mobile devices.
On Wednesday, the Digital Advertising Alliance, representing the nation's largest media and marketing associations, announced mobile principles for behaviorally targeting advertising, the first major step in offering consumers a way to opt-out of targeted ads the same way consumers can now opt-out of online paid messages via the DAA's ad choices program.

Government of Canada Moves to E-Printing

http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/media/nr-cp/2013/0705-eng.asp

The Honourable Tony Clement, President of the Treasury Board, today announced the Government of Canada has made electronic publishing its new standard for all documents as part of an ongoing commitment to reduce costs and modernize operations.
"Our Government is committed to delivering information to Canadians in the most efficient and cost effective way," said Minister Clement. "From now on electronic publishing will be the default for all government organizations, significantly reducing the amount of large volume printing and the costs associated with it."
In 2011–12, the Government of Canada spent about $19 million on the printing, distribution and warehousing of communications products. Through these new procedures, the Government will reduce these costs.

Short Term Renewable Energy Use Down

http://www.deloitte.com/view/en_GX/global/6f6ae56a59600410VgnVCM2000003356f70aRCRD.htm

Global investment in the renewable energy sector is set to continue to decline in the short term from the 11 percent fall seen in 2012. This is according to the Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (DTTL) Alternative thinking 2013: Renewable energy under the microscope report. 
The report identifies the important trends and opportunities in renewable energy for developers, investors, and policy-makers. The report also points out where significant barriers to progress lie, and suggests strategies for dealing with them. Despite the recent decline in investment, the study finds that renewables are becoming less alternative and increasingly mainstream, with 118 countries now having renewable energy targets in place and the wave of public demand for clean energy increasing.

USDA Scientists: Invasive Trees for Jet Fuel

http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2013/130722.htm

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are exploring options for using invasive trees to develop U.S. Navy fighter jet fuel. 
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists at several locations in the western United States are contributing to a project called "Accelerated Renewable Jet Fuel (RJF) Supplies from Invasive Woody Species." ARS is USDA's chief intramural scientific research agency, and this work supports the USDA priority of developing new sources of bioenergy.

Americans Continue to Use More Renewable Energy

https://www.llnl.gov/news/newsreleases/2013/Jul/NR-13-07-04.html#.UfAy1FOYyKw

The 2012 energy flow chart released by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory details the sources of energy production, how Americans are using energy and how much waste exists.

Americans used more natural gas, solar panels and wind turbines and less coal to generate electricity in 2012, according to the most recent U.S. energy charts released by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Natural gas use is up particularly in the electricity generation sector, where it has basically substituted directly for coal, while sustained low natural gas prices have prompted a shift from coal to gas in the electricity generating sector, according to A.J. Simon, an LLNL energy systems analyst.
The rise in renewables is tied to both prices (the underlying cost of solar panels and wind turbines has gone down) and policy (government incentives to installers of equipment or renewable energy targets in various states), Simon said.
Overall, Americans used 2.2 quadrillion BTU, or quads, less in 2012 than the previous year (BTU or British Thermal Unit is a unit of measurement for energy; 3,400 BTU is equivalent to about 1 kW-hr).
Once again, wind power saw the highest gains.

European Forest Organizations Push for EU Report

http://www.fern.org/publications/press-releases/european-commission-urged-release-eu-forest-strategy

This press release warns that any delay in proposing an EU forestry strategy will lead to more fragmented and possibly contradictory decisions. European forest related organisations are seriously concerned that the European Commission has delayed publishing the new EU Forest Strategy, overlooking the importance of forests and forestry in EU policy.

PPPC Reports June P&W Numbers

The Pulp & Products Council has reported North American coated mechanical paper shipments in Jun declined -14.6%, as compared to the same month last year. Shipments for H1 2013 fell -10.7%. Demand for the month decreased -5.8% and for the first six months it was down -5.1%. Imports grew +63.8% in June and +22.1% for H1. The operating rate was 91% for the month, 87% for the first six months.
Coated woodfree shipments fell -2.5% in June, -1.2% in H1. Demand was up +1.7% for the month, 0.4% for H1. Imports increased +20.7% in June, +4.5% in H1. The operating rate was 86% for the month and 86% for the first six months.
SC-A/SC-A+ shipments rose +17.9% in June and +25.9% in H1. Demand was up +4.6% for the month and +13.5% for the first six months. Imports fell -16.7% in June, -11.1% in H1. The operating rate for Supercalendered paper, including SC-A and SC-B, was 91% for the month, 90% for the first six months.
Uncoated woodfree shipments declined -3.2% in June and -4.8% in H1. Demand decreased -1.6% for the month and -4.5% for the first six months. Imports grew +15.1% in June, +13.7% for H1. The operating rate was 87% in June and 91% in H1.

Verso Adds Pharmaceutical Insert Grade

http://www.versobooks.com/

Verso Paper Corp. (VRS) announces the launch of a new pharmaceutical insert grade: VersoRx^TM. This new product offering, engineered to deliver outstanding print fidelity while providing excellent sheeting and folding performance, is an exciting addition to Verso's growing specialty papers product portfolio.

Paper Companies, Fuel Tax Credits and the IRS

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/when-it-comes-to-the-paper-industry-and-fuel-tax-credits-irs-looks-like-a-soft-touch/2013/07/18/e1040fa8-bcdf-11e2-97d4-a479289a31f9_story.html

When the American paper industry came up with a plan to get $2 billion in tax refunds, it first had to get past a guardian of the public’s money: the Internal Revenue Service.

But the IRS, which has been in the news lately for its aggressive targeting of politically affiliated nonprofits, took at look at the paper industry’s efforts and effectively shrugged. With no ruling from the agency, the refunds went through — based on the findings of the companies themselves. 
The $2 billion in refunds are a new twist in an earlier controversy about U.S. paper companies and an IRS interpretation of a highway bill provision passed by Congress in 2007. 
The controversy began in 2009 when the IRS said that paper companies — which had been generating power by burning a pulping byproduct known as “black liquor” since the 1930s — could add a few drops of diesel and qualify for the 50-cent-a-gallon alternative fuel mixture tax credit.

Study: Canada Must Preserve Half Boreal Forests

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CDIQqQIwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.leaderpost.com%2Ftechnology%2FCanada%2Bneeds%2Bconservation%2Bgame%2Bpreserving%2Bhalf%2Bboreal%2Bforests%2F8690713%2Fstory.html&ei=IejuUb__F6jB4AOHlYG4Bg&usg=AFQjCNHNpq1rtEJyvKXcj87tncILbIYqNw&sig2=hT8vu9b6aapBUnLgVVeOiA&bvm=bv.49641647,d.dmg

A group of top international scientists says Canada needs to dramatically up its conservation game to ensure its vast northern forests remain healthy in the face of increasing industrial pressure.
In a paper to be presented today at the International Congress of Conservation Biology in Baltimore, Md., its authors argue that Canada needs to preserve about half of its boreal forest. That's significantly more than the 10 per cent level researchers previously thought was necessary to conserve natural systems."Conservation science has caught up to an understanding of what is really needed," said Jeffs Wells, a scientist with the Boreal Songbird Initiative and one of 23 researchers from Canada and around the world who contributed to the paper.

UK: 79% Act on Direct Mail

http://printinthemix.com/Fastfacts/Show/749

New UK research into consumers’ attitudes towards direct mailings reveals that 79% of consumers surveyed act on brands’ direct mailings immediately, demonstrating the continuing power of print.
The finding is reported in From Letterbox to Inbox 2013, an attitudinal print tracking study of 1,232 UK adults conducted by the UK Direct Marketing Association (DMA), conducted by consumer research firm fast.MAP and sponsored by HP.
According to the findings, consumers regard direct mail and other printed communications as being essential to their overall experience of brands of which they’re customers or in which they’re interested.
DIRECT MAIL TRIGGERS AN ONLINE RESPONSE  

The survey found there was a 10% greater percentage of consumers who visited a brand’s website in response to direct mail than responded to an email.

The top three actions consumers take after receiving direct mail from a brand they’re interested in:
44% visit a brands’ website, 
34% search online for more information about the product 
26% keep the mailing for future reference.
DIRECT MAIL VIEWED AS TRUSTWORTHY  

Respondents highlighted the essential role direct mail plays within their lives as consumers, with 56% saying they found printed marketing to be the “most trustworthy” of media channels.

DIRECT MAIL IS RETAINED FOR FUTURE REFERENCE  

Nearly half of those surveyed (48%) said they had retained direct mailings for future reference, with 17% saying they do so regularly. 
MANY CONSUMERS EXPECT DIRECT MAILINGS

One-third (33%) say they would have a negative view of a brand not offering printed communications. 
YOUNGER CONSUMERS MORE LIKELY TO BELIEVE THAT DIRECT MAIL IS NOT GOING AWAY  

Twice the numbers of 18-34 year-olds believe direct mailings will never be replaced entirely by online marketing messages, compared to consumers over age 55 (20% v. 9%).

Ikea's Interactive Catalog

http://www.dmnews.com/jumping-off-the-page/article/303994/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DMNewsHome+%28DMNews+Home%29&utm_content=Netvibes

No matter how beautiful, colorful, thick, glossy, or lovely a print catalog can be, the process of flipping through it is mostly, at core, a passive experience. Not so with the 2014 IKEA catalog, slated to mail to consumers in August. 
For the past two years IKEA has been on a mission to take its catalog—which is celebrating its 63rd anniversary in print this year, I might add—from the coffee table to the tablet with an interactive app that combines augmented reality, video galleries, and extra product information to create what CMO Leontyne Green Sykes calls, “an experience that's consistent with how consumers are consuming media today.”  
“Of course we like having that physical piece of collateral we can go through and tear out pages to create collages of the things we like,” says Green Sykes. “But it's even more exciting when you can really interact with a catalog and it becomes a mobile piece with a digital component—and who doesn't love augmented reality?”