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Sustainable Procurement

Responsibly sourced, sustainably made

Sappi is dedicated to respecting business ethics and human rights through our actions and values—everywhere we operate and throughout our supply chains. The over 20,000 suppliers that are part of Sappi’s global value chain are essential to our business. From providing woodfibre and other raw materials to energy, logistics and other services they support us in making the everyday products that our customers need worldwide.

Ensuring our suppliers work alongside us by acting ethically, responsibly and sustainably is a top priority. One that is enshrined in our Supplier Code of Conduct and supported by our collaboration with EcoVadis, a global platform providing business sustainability ratings.

In line with our Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) commitments, climate action and sharing of emissions data is also a focus in our engagement with suppliers.

We’re working towards our vision of a thriving world by avoiding negative sourcing impacts, giving our customers and consumers transparent insight into our supply chain and collaborating with our suppliers to promote responsible business.

Stephen Binnie, GROUP CEO

Working together in partnership with suppliers enables us to actively identify risk, assess social and environmental performance, as well as encourage commitment to sustainable choices and the UN SDGs.

Sarah Price, Director Sustainability

Sustainable highlights from 2024

  • 84% of our global eligible spend with declared compliance to our Supplier Code of Conduct
  • 59% of our global eligible spend is with suppliers that disclose and have a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) performance rating with EcoVadis  
  • 25% of our global eligible spend is with suppliers that commit to science-based emissions reduction targets 

According to Code

Our Group Supplier Code of Conduct outlines the minimum expectations for doing business with Sappi and is further underpinned by our Code of Ethics, Human Rights and Whistle-blowing Policies. Together, these policies ensure Sappi’s values and ethical standards are clearly understood and supported by all our suppliers, their first-tier suppliers and other stakeholders.  

We do not tolerate child labour, forced labour, physical punishment or abuse. We recognise lawful employee rights of free association and collective bargaining. We comply with employment, health and safety laws in every country where we operate and expect our suppliers and contractors to do the same with equally high standards.  

Our Code of Conduct covers requirements related to:

  • Business ethics
  • Human rights
  • Health & safety
  • Environment
  • Diversity & equal opportunity 

To ensure our suppliers understand these expectations, we request they sign self-declarations of compliance and/or integrate the Code of Conduct within contracts.  

An ethical journey with suppliers

Sappi’s  Code of Ethics   governs our internal practices and relationships with suppliers. It states that we do not tolerate child labour, forced labour, physical punishment or abuse. We recognise lawful employee rights of free association and collective bargaining. We comply with employment, health and safety laws in every country where we operate and expect our suppliers, contractors and their suppliers to do the same with equally high standards. Our suppliers are our partners on this journey, striving towards jointly more sustainable outcomes.

Due Diligence supported by EcoVadis

Our partnership with EcoVadis reinforces our Supplier Code of Conduct by giving us more insight into our Suppliers’ risks, responsible business practices and sustainability performance.

Through EcoVadis we gain an appreciation for how our supply chain partners address critical topics like labour and human rights within their operations. We can also identify where performance is below our expectations or the industry average so that we can take action accordingly. EcoVadis assessment results can be integrated into our sourcing and supplier review processes to inform our procurement decisions.

The Ecovadis methodology focuses on 21 sustainability criteria aligned with international sustainability standards including the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, the International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards and the ISO 26000 standard.

An ethical journey with suppliers

Sappi’s Code of Ethics governs our internal practices and relationships with suppliers. It states that we do not tolerate child labour, forced labour, physical punishment or abuse. We recognise lawful employee rights of free association and collective bargaining. We comply with employment, health and safety laws in every country where we operate and expect our suppliers and contractors to do the same with equally high standards. Our suppliers are our partners on this journey, striving towards jointly more sustainable outcomes.

Climate action in our value chains

Reducing Scope 3 emissions, the indirect emissions across a company’s value chain, is a global challenge that requires collaboration across value chains. We engage with Tier 1 raw material suppliers on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to quantify these emissions and gain a deeper understanding of the overall carbon footprint of our products. This collaboration goes beyond accounting; it provides an opportunity to exchange with our suppliers about climate action and decarbonisation progress. By working together across our value chain, we can identify opportunities and create a resilient and sustainable value chain.

Sappi and the SDGs

We’ve set ambitious targets aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the seven areas where we believe Sappi can make the biggest impact. 

Partnerships for the goal

Build and advice mutually beneficial partnerships

Decent work and economic growth

Achieve 80% declared compliance with supplier code of conduct

Share of certified fibre >75%

Enhance biodiversity in conservation area 10% improvement

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