The brand has partnered with Walstead UK, which prints Country Life, to wrap its subscriber editions in sustainably-sourced and carbon-balanced paper.
Mark Hedges, Country Life editor, says: “The tide is finally turning on how we all think about the use of plastic and our responsibility to live more sustainably. More so than ever before, our readers are becoming advocates for our environment and that ethos should come through in everything we do. They are making changes to address their environmental impact and now they can rest assured that their subscription to Country Life is that bit kinder to the planet too.”
Steve Prentice, Country Life managing director, adds: “While polythene is fully recyclable and has a relatively low carbon footprint, the facilities, capabilities and approaches to recycling differ between local authorities up and down the country. In most areas, readers needed to take the wrap to a supermarket to be able to dispose of it responsibly. This makes paper a better product for wrapping our subscriber editions as it is so widely recycled, but in making this change, we have been cautious not to shift the environmental impact from one place to another. We have worked hard with our partner, Walstead UK, to ensure this wrap is sourced from sustainably-managed forests and is carbon-balanced.”
Jon Hearnden, group sales director, Walstead UK, says: “Walstead UK is firmly committed to working with all our stakeholders to minimise the impact on the environment. We continue to look at ways to identify further improvements through the creation of focus groups and working parties that we set up to address this important topic. The time and effort invested by working collaboratively with TI Media over the past few months has paid dividends. Consequently, we can now offer a robust and sustainable solution for Country Life which meets the objectives of our client, their subscribers and our business.”
TI Media says it is exploring a range of alternatives to the use of polythene wrap on its subscriber copies that are environmentally friendly while also being practical and cost-effective for each magazine’s audience. The publisher is also a member of the PPA’s Sustainability Action Group.
