Why was PaperWise founded?

Why cut down trees (a primary raw material) when you can make beautiful, sustainable paper from agricultural waste with a lower impact on the environment? PaperWise upcycles agricultural waste, a secondary raw material that becomes available annually. 47% better for the environment!

Why PaperWise was founded
The current global system is no longer sustainable. Raw materials are being depleted, biodiversity is decreasing,
environmental pollution is increasing, and the climate is changing. We must all take care of our earth to leave it future-proof for the generations after us. Why should we tap into primary raw materials when secondary raw materials are available and have less impact on the environment?

At PaperWise, we believe in a sustainable world where circularity is a matter of course and agricultural waste contributes to building a sustainable future. Producing paper from plant residues with the lowest possible impact on the environment. We will only stop once children at school learn that paper is made from agricultural waste. Wise With Waste!

How we make an impact
PaperWise upcycles agricultural waste, a secondary raw material that becomes available annually. From this, we produce sustainable paper with a lower impact on the environment.

Agriculture has been one of the most important ways for humans to provide their food for thousands of years. But did you know that 80% of a crop remains unused after harvest and food processing? These are the inedible stems—plant residues—that are left over. Every year, billions of tons of agricultural waste become available from food production. It is a waste to see this as trash! PaperWise gives agricultural waste, a secondary raw material, a second life as a raw material for paper. We extract cellulose from the fibers of the plant residues; the essential ingredient for making paper. The share of agricultural waste replaces the share of fibers from trees. This gives agricultural waste a second life and allows trees (and thus deforestation!) to be spared. By using agricultural waste as a raw material for paper and paperboard, we obtain food and raw materials from the same piece of land and plant. Using agricultural waste as a raw material for paper is ecologically much better (including lower CO2 emissions). Wise With Waste!

Paper & paperboard production
An enormous amount of paper & paperboard is produced worldwide. The European market for paper and paperboard has
a size of more than €100 billion and accounts for 20% of the world market. Currently, about 50% of paper & paperboard is made from trees from plantation forests and about 50% from recycled
paper. Imagine; thousands of football fields of natural forests gone, year after year. This comes at the expense of
biodiversity, CO2 storage, and clean air. And to think that trees are a primary raw material, with
growth times of 10 to 80 years. Agricultural waste, on the other hand, is a secondary raw material and becomes available
annually. Furthermore, paper from agricultural waste has a lower environmental impact than paper from trees and recycled paper. Together we can make an impact and prevent the waste of valuable raw materials!