Sappi Verve Learning Journey
Devendra Gupta, FSC® Value Chains and Gerard Busse, FSC Southern Africa Marketing and Communications were invited to join an exciting initiative by Sappi Southern Africa.
We were invited to join a 5 day learning journey to find out more about Sappi’s forestry research and operations , as we traced the growing of seedlings to the production of dissolving pulp to clothe the world with man-made cellulosic fibres.
Our fellow travelers were sourcing and sustainability specialists from leading South African and America and European retailers, representatives from Textile Exchange (Berlin), and The Biodiversity Consultancy (United Kingdom, South Africa) and Sappi Verve sustainability and marketing teams.
Day 1 (Sunday 10 March) saw our bus leave from Durban, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Province (East Coast, South Africa) and travel inland to the uMkhomazi Valley. Here we were near the source of the great uMkhomazi river which flows more than 300 km to the Southern part of KZN of Durban, where the Sappi Saiccor Mill is located. We learnt more about Sappi’s water stewardship activities, including the work they do in partnership WWF South Africa. We also met up with local communities and organisations in the valley who collaborate WWF and Sappi to assist in responsible land management activities such as improving cattle farming practices, clearing invasive species as well as fostering collective action for better catchment management.
Day 2 (Monday 11 March) saw the intrepid travelers visit the KZN midlands. Here we spent the morning at the Sappi Shaw Research Centre, which highlighted their in-depth forest research required to grow the trees of the future. We also learnt more about Sappi’s sustainability initiatives, biodiversity work and some time was spent finding out more about their Eucalypt and Pine tree breeding programs. FSC had the opportunity to share more about forest and chain-of-custody certification, as well as the Ecosystem Services standard which could be beneficial for Sappi. After a delicious lunch we visited the Fire Hawk Fire Detection Centre, where we were astounded at how technology is used to monitor fire outbreaks. That evening we had a delightful time the Karkloof Country Club which receives amazing support from Sappi and found out about the company’s support of recreational activities such as mountain biking.
Day 3 (Tuesday 12 March) Day three of the Sappi Verve learning journey included a visit to their nursery, forests and wetlands, exploring how we grow our trees from seedlings or cuttings to mature trees. Site Management, harvesting and biodiversity issues were discussed and observed. Of note is that Sappi have carefully mapped out and protected areas of high biodiversity in their operations to preserve local ecosystems.
On Day 4 (Wednesday 13 March), the learning journey group met with the Khulisa community growers and viewed small farming and community operations. These local farmers and smallholders help to secure fibre supply for Sappi Saiccor Mill production, which in turn creates jobs. It was humbling to see how these farming enterprises are growing from strength to strength supported by the Sappi Khulisa Forestry Team. We then continued travelling down to the KZN South Coast in preparation for our visit to the Saiccor Mill on Thursday.
Day 5 (Thursday 14 March), our group arrived full of excitement at the Sappi Saiccor Mill, the ‘cradle’ of Lyocell and sustainable Viscose fibre production. The culmination of our journey. Here we saw the timber arrive (more the 250 timber trucks a day) in the woodyard, which was then chipped and transferred to the digesters, which were is like a giant pressure cookers. The brown pulp then moved to the washing and screening stages followed by bleaching. The pulp was dried and made into rolls and bales for dispatch. We also visited the Centre of Excellence which offers technical services to customers to support the performance of the product in the market as well as Research and Development to assist with customer requirements. The day then ended with a visit to the Skills Centre, where training is undertaken for the local community and employees which is part of the Sappi’s skills upliftment and enterprise development programme in KZN.
The Sappi Learning Journey was a real eye opener for external stakeholders to see the integration of environmental, social and economic factors underpinning the FSC Standard. A special thanks to the Krelyne Andrew, Sustainability GM and Madelaine Fourie, Marketing GM for Verve and the rest of the Sappi team for their hospitality.
