Forest Footprint

More than a decade ago, Kimberly-Clark launched an industry-leading fiber procurement policy that sought to minimize our impact on the world's forests. We focused on two strategies:

1. Increase our use of environmentally preferred fibers – e.g., recycled and alternative fibers and virgin fibers certified by the Forest Stewardship Council®.
2. Reduce our use of natural forest fibers, which for Kimberly-Clark are primarily fibers from northern boreal and temperate forests. 

We've made significant progress in both areas, but we recognize the challenges posed by the dual climate and biodiversity crises. We also know that our fiber sourcing footprint overlaps with communities that will be disproportionately impacted by climate change and biodiversity loss – Indigenous communities, and communities that depend on forests for their livelihoods. That's why, looking ahead, we are aligning our 2030 ambitions to tackle these issues as well. 

We believe FSC® certification applies the most rigorous criteria for the conservation of biodiversity and the protection of the rights of Indigenous communities. These are two important reasons why FSC®-certified virgin fiber is the only virgin fiber we consider to be an environmentally preferred fiber and allow to count toward our 2025 goal. We will continue to look beyond our FSC® commitment for additional ways Kimberly-Clark can support the well-being and land tenure rights of Indigenous and other under-represented forest-dependent communities within our sphere of influence, while simultaneously delivering climate and biodiversity benefits. 

Finally, our ongoing efforts to reduce our use of natural forest fiber from high carbon value forests and increase our use of environmentally preferred fibers such as alternative and recycled fibers will continue to be important levers for lowering our forest carbon footprint.