It's in our hands: STAEDTLER produces sustainable pencils
STAEDTLER is taking action on efficiency, resource conservation and long-lasting products in order to respond with care and foresight to the needs of the environment. As a manufacturer of writing and creative goods, we are focussing on measures that fall within our responsibility and have a direct influence on internal processes. For example, STAEDTLER is shining a spotlight on manufacturing processes and the associated materials, such as wood and plastic. STAEDTLER’s product range includes more and more products characterised by their sustainable properties – for example, pencils made from Upcycled Wood or Lumocolor products made from recycled plastic.
Image rights: STAEDTLER Mars GmbH & Co. KG
Upcycled Wood – for a sustainable future
Wood is the heart of numerous STAEDTLER products and is therefore the most important raw material for the stationery and creative goods manufacturer. The company developed a process that enables even more efficiency in utilisation: upcycling. In this process, wood scraps are made use of and creatively transformed into something new. We use wood chips that are left over from sawing and planing processes in the wood industry. This means that even the smallest wood remains can be reused in high-quality pencils. STAEDTLER underlines its responsibility towards the environment with the claim “It's in our hands”, which accompanies the product range. The chips used for production come from PEFC-certified, predominantly German forests (PEFC/04-31-1227). All pencils made from Upcycled Wood are manufactured in Germany. Thanks to their high quality and resistance to breaking, they are particularly durable and save resources in both production and use.The icon in the black and yellow stripe design, the Noris 120 pencil, is also being converted to Made from Upcycled Wood within Europe.
Housing made of 97% recycled plastic
STAEDTLER is also breaking new ground with regard to plastic products: from November 2022, the writing and creative goods manufacturer will begin shifting to recycled materials for the Lumocolor product family, on an international scale. In future, 97 percent of the housing of the pens (i.e. barrel, cap and end cap) will be made of recycled plastic (in accordance with ISO 14021). The change will initially apply to Lumocolor permanent and Lumocolor non-permanent universal pens as well as special pens. STAEDTLER plans to extend this conversion to recycled plastic to the entire Lumocolor range in the course of the next few years. The pens have a new barrel imprint so that the sustainable message is outwardly visible, as well as an attractive green packaging design.
Image rights: STAEDTLER Mars GmbH & Co. KG
Image rights: STAEDTLER Mars GmbH & Co. KG
Sustainable edition
In addition to Lumocolor, the housing of products from the triplus and Textsurfer ranges will also consist of 97 percent recycled material. They all come together in a special edition. The design of the packaging highlights the sustainable thinking behind the product range and provides customers with useful product information. STAEDTLER thereby ensures maximum visibility of the sustainable aspects of the products and their manufacturing processes. The cardboard packaging consists of at least 80 percent recycled material. Like all STAEDTLER pencils produced in Germany, the special edition pencils are also produced with 100 percent green electricity.