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Raw materials

Metsä Tissue uses fresh fibres originating from regenerative and certified or controlled Northern forests as its main raw material. In addition, we also produce recycled fibre-based tissue papers in some of our chosen mills.

Approximately 70% of our tissue paper is made from fresh fiber. Most of this fiber comes from Metsä Group’s own value chain: Metsä Fibre supplies the fibres and sources the wood from Metsä Forest. This ensures high-quality raw material is available locally and makes Metsä Tissue a unique player in the European tissue market. Metsä Tissue promotes the use of forest certification systems such as PEFC and FSC®, and over 95% of the pulp we use is certified. The origin of the wood we use is 100% traceable.

Fresh fibres as our main raw material

The main raw material in our tissue and greaseproof paper products is fresh wood fibre, which is renewable, 100% fossil-free, and sourced from Northern forests. Fresh fibre in hygiene paper production is resource-efficient and generates no waste, whereas recycled fibres require deinking, leaving only around 60% usable raw material for the final product.  

By using renewable fresh fiber, we benefit from the entire value chain from forest to finished product – resulting in high-quality, pure, and safe end-products 

According to a study from Fraunhofer (Wüstenhagen et al. 2023), the carbon emissions of pulp production at Äänekoski bioproduct mill are up to 45% lower than the European average. Further, the transport of pulp within Europe is 5 times lower compared to pulp imports from Latin America. The new bioproduct mills (Äänekoski and Kemi) present the most modern level of technology. These bioproduct mills set a new standard for the fresh fibre production, which allows for a substantial reduction in the level of emissions and overall environmental performance. 

We use recycled fibre whenever it is suitable, considering the quality and product safety requirements of the final product and customer’s needs 

The raw material we use to produce recycled paper products is sourced as close as possible to our mills to reduce the environmental impact of transport. The majority of the recycled paper we use is mixed office waste, i.e. office paper, and the rest, 'old news' newsprint. 

The future of recycled fibre

The availability and quality of recycled fibres are continuously declining due to digitalisation, and we at Metsä Tissue foresee the tissue fibre balance to move increasingly towards fresh fibres in the future. We believe that in the long run, the recycled papers are more suitable for non-hygiene end uses. They should be channelled to uses where they will tie carbon for longer, replace fossil materials and where quality requirements are lower, such as non-food packages.

Forest certification systems PEFC and FSC®

Metsä Tissue promotes the use of forest certification systems, such as PEFC and FSC®, that are based on independent third-party verification of sustainable forest management practices. Our goal is that the fresh wood fibres used are fully traceable to certified sources. (FSC-C004147, PEFC/02-31-77)