Ahlstrom's Due Diligence System for EU Timber Regulation now verified by SGS

Ahlstrom Corporation PRESS RELEASE May 3, 2013 at 9.30 

Ahlstrom, a global high performance fiber-based materials company, announces that the company's Due Diligence System for EU Timber Regulation is verified by a third party.

The EU Timber Regulation (995/2010) entered into force on March 3, 2013 and requires operators to have a Due Diligence System to prevent them to place illegal timber products on the EU market. Ahlstrom Due Diligence System has been verified by Sociéte General de Surveillance, SGS, in Switzerland. The verification statement issued by SGS confirms that all products Ahlstrom supplies from its European plants are made from pulp for which the risk for illegally harvested timber has been assessed in compliance with the requirements of the SGS EU Timber Regulation Due Diligence System.

SGS verifies that Ahlstrom has put in place a management system that gathers information about the products intended for supply to the European market. The management system analyses and evaluates the risk of illegally harvested products being placed on the European market. It also includes appropriate risk mitigation procedures to minimize the risk of placing illegal products on the European market.

For forest-based fibers, Ahlstrom supports FSC® and PEFC(TM) forest certification systems. As of today, a total of 15 Ahlstrom manufacturing plants have Chain of Custody Certifications. Ahlstrom purchases the pulp to these sites as PEFC® or FSC(TM) certified or FSC(TM) Controlled Wood, which contributes to a negligible risk in addition to other criteria in the EU Timber Regulation.

For more information, please contact:
Liisa Nyyssönen
Vice President, Communications
Tel. +358 10 888 4757

Anna Maija Wessman
Vice President, Sustainability
Tel. +358 10 888 4185

Ahlstrom in brief
Ahlstrom is a high performance fiber-based materials company, partnering with leading businesses around the world to help them stay ahead. Our products are used in a large variety of everyday applications, such as filters, medical gowns and drapes, diagnostics, wallcoverings, flooring and food packaging. We have a leading market position in the businesses in which we operate. In 2012, Ahlstrom's net sales from the continuing operations (excluding Label and Processing business) amounted to EUR 1 billion. Our 3,800 employees serve customers in 28 countries on six continents. Ahlstrom's share is quoted on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. More information available at www.ahlstrom.com.