This makes APP the first in its sector, in the Asia-Pacific region, to receive this recondition from SGS. The company says that ISO 26000, a set of globally recognised best-practice guidelines on organisational governance, labour practices, the environment, fair operating practices, consumer issues, community involvement and development, align with the goals of the sustainability roadmap including human rights, employee welfare, and community empowerment.
Aida Greenbury, managing director sustainability and stakeholder engagement, APP welcomed the recognition and pledged to extend the program. She says, “APP strives to be the responsible global leader in the pulp and paper industry. The ISO 2600 standard is only a first step toward a bigger commitment of responsible business practices. The next step is to replicate the successful program in other mills, and we expect the, to be eligible for independent verification as early as 2013.”
Guy Escarfail, managing director, SGS Indonesia says, “The objective of the SGS Performance ISO 26000 method is to identify how organisations can improve their performance in various areas of social responsibility. We are pleased to see that a corporation such as APP has chosen our method, and values continuous improvement, demonstrating commitment to internal and external stakeholders. Benchmarks and best practices in sustainable fields were provided to APP to enable a path of ongoing improvement and evaluation of performance.”
APP says the new designation complements its sustainability Roadmap Vision 2020 launched in June, detailing the company’s path forward towards social and environmental practices in sustainability. Greenbury adds, “As a growing corporation operating in a developing country, sustainable development is a pillar of our operations. We’ve adopted the ISO 26000 guidelines to ensure the integration of socially responsible behaviour and the development of sustainable relationships with many members of our community such as customers, employees, NGOs and business partners.”
The mill has also received various certifications including ISO 9001 for Quality Management System and ISO 14001 for Environmental Management System.
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