Can paper survive the digital era?

The first predictions of a paperless world were boldly made in the 1970s and predicted complete digitization during the 1990s. However, when we look at any company, regardless of its size, it is more than clear that we are still a long way from absolute digitisation and a paperless world.

So what is the reality of paper consumption?

According to data published on the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers website, the amount of paper and board produced worldwide is on the rise, although production continues to decline slightly in the US and Europe. 2014 was a record year for global paper production, reaching 406.5 million tonnes.

China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of paper and paperboard. It produced 25% and consumed 26% of the world’s paper and paperboard production in the record year 2014. The United States of America was second in paper consumption, Japan third and Germany fourth.

Globally, the amount of paper consumed per person is even increasing. Over the last 5 years, this figure has increased from 47 kg to 57 kg of paper per year. So paper is definitely not dying out.

The good news is that it is not only paper production that is increasing, but also paper recycling. The paper recycling rate in Europe has increased by almost 20 percentage points over the last 15 years, reaching 71.5% in 2015.

Nor is it true that paper production is causing mass tree felling. According to data from the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI), only 13% of harvested wood is used in the paper industry.

Paper and its old-new place in the digital world

Paper has a classic but also innovative place in the business world. Almost half of the paper produced is used in the packaging industry and more than a third as graphic paper. However, the modern world also brings new uses for paper. A perfect example is multimedia cardboard, which has a built-in HD video screen with sound. Such packaging would then not only protect products in the future, but also help to educate.

So digitisation does not kill paper, it only minimises its unnecessary waste. We believe that there will be more and more companies that see the trees behind the paper.