Sustainability Report of DS Smith

SUSTAINABILITY REVIEW 2015
Balancing
Sustainability
Introduction
Governance
Economic
Sustainability
Environment
Social Responsibility
About this Review
In this Review
1 Introduction
1 Welcome to our
Sustainability Review
2
Our Business Overview
Letter from the Chief Executive
Our values
Strategic goals
Market context
Over
6 billion
24,700
211
206.8
3,820m
2,183 GWh
employees
boxes sold
8 Supply Cycle Thinking

10
Stakeholder engagement
12
Materiality and risk
14 Governance
15 Transparency
16
Strategic oversight
16 Targets
17
Commitments to
international standards
17
Ethics and compliance
17
Code of Conduct
17
Competition law
18 Economic Sustainability
19 Procurement
20 SEDEX
production facilities
worldwide
Revenues
in 2014/15
kg CO2e/tonne
production
Energy exports
to third parties
22 Environment
23 Packaging reputation
23 Carbon footprint
24 Raw materials
25 Recycling and waste
27 Biodiversity
28 Social Responsibility
29 Employees
30 The DS Smith
Charitable Foundation
Insight.
Innovation.
Leadership.
ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2015
30 Employee fundrasing
33 About this review
33 Scope of the Review
34 Assurance Statement
35 Data tables
Explore our website at www.dssmith.com

Explore our sustainability website at www.dssmith.com/sustainability
Download our Annual Report 2015 at
www.dssmith.com/investors/annual-reports
Sustainability Review 2015

www.dssmith.com/sustainability
Introduction
Introduction 1
Welcome to our Sustainability Review
Balancing
Sustainability
Sustainability requires us to balance many factors,
and this review is one of the ways in which
we explain our position to our many diverse
stakeholders in order to encourage engagement
and debate, and to stimulate innovation.
We believe this will ultimately help us make better
investment decisions and enable us to prioritise
our activities to align ourselves more closely with
our stakeholders.
OUR PRIORITY ISSUES

These have been identified
as being the most material
issues to our internal and
external stakeholders.
Packaging reputation
for more information see p23
Carbon footprint
Raw materials
Recycling and waste

Employees
As our business continues to grow and

to expand into new territories, publishing
information about our sustainability
objectives demonstrates the high priority
we place on conducting our business in
a responsible and sustainable manner.
We have used the GRI G4 reporting
framework as a guideline for our data
collection strategy, and will publish
relevant information on our website:
Each and every day, the activities of

all our colleagues are directed towards
delighting our customers, providing a
safe and productive work environment
for our employees, contractors, suppliers,
customers and other visitors to our
locations, and creating value for
our shareholders.
We want to share with all our

stakeholders the stories of our
challenges and successes. Every
day, there are many competing
priorities that require our managers
to make difficult decisions and
balance sustainability objectives.
We believe that our continued growth
during 2014 is evidence that we are
getting this balance right.
Our priority issues, which remain our
most material areas for action, have
not changed. We have continued to play
an active role in helping communities
address these issues, and this is a core
component of our corporate values.
How we have performed during
2014, and the areas where we see
potential for further improvement
in the coming years are described in
detail in the following pages.
2 Introduction
Our Business Overview
We create value by bringing

together a collection of skills,
all centred around the design
and manufacture of packaging.
DSSmith now operates across
32 countries and employs
around 24,700 people, having
acquired businesses in Spain,
Italy and south eastern Europe
over the last year.
OUR BUSINESS MODEL
INSIGHT
Our vision is to become the

leader in recycled packaging
for consumer goods.
PACKAGING
We bring insight and innovation to

designing the optimum packaging for our
customers supply cycles. To support our
production of high-quality corrugated
packaging, we manufacture paper and in
turn have a recycling business to source
the fibre we require. We also design and
manufacture certain types of speciality
plastic packaging, in particular plastic
bags and taps for bag-in-box packaging
and rigid crates for bottled liquids.
Balance of our combined

businesses (million tonnes)
Corrugated packaging is our
primary output:
Corrugated
Packaging
Corrugated Paper
Manufacture
Fibre Sourcing/
Recycling
PAPER
MANUFACTURE
INNOVATION
CORRUGATED
RECYCLING
DESIGN
3.3
2.4
5.4
PLASTICS
Introduction
Introduction
3
OUR BUSINESSES
Corrugated
Packaging
We design and manufacture corrugated
packaging. We focus on packaging for
fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG),
such as grocery products. The remainder
of our business is for industrial products,
other consumer products and other uses,
such as packaging for on-line deliveries.
Industrial packaging is often very high
precision and involves complex designs.
HOW WE CREATE VALUE

We help our customers reduce their costs,
sell more, and manage their risk. We are
able to do this through our skills in
innovation, design and manufacture, and
insight into consumer behaviour in the
retail environment. We invest in the skills
necessary to deliver this promise, and we
offer our solutions on a pan-European
basis. We work with our customers,
analysing every point where packaging
can be optimised.
For example, we optimise the box
strength, for stacking in a lorry, speed
on the packing line, and for easier
openability and display in store. We also
look at how packaging works best once
on a retailers shelf, in order to drive sales
and improve handling costs for the
retailer. We then ensure it can be easily
recycled. We describe this approach as
Supply Cycle Thinking.
Our ability to provide pan-European
solutions, via an extensive manufacturing
base, is a key differentiator. We work with
leading FMCG and industrial customers
to supply packaging to their own network
of factories, with guaranteed service
levels and quality that apply across the
business. Our customers know that the
packaging for their branded products will
be precisely as specified, irrespective of
where it has been manufactured.
This is all part of our strategic
commitment to delight our customers.
Our scale also allows us to invest in
research, innovation and design, and
we have a network of design centres.
HOW WE CREATE VALUE
Recycling
We source used paper and old corrugated
cases (OCC) from retailers and traders.
This fibre is principally used by our
own paper mills to make recycled paper,
with the remainder sold to other paper
manufacturers. We offer a full recycling
service and handle other materials such
as glass and metals, which we recycle
in partnership with subcontractors. We
differ from other recyclers because we
do not operate landfill sites our sole
focus is on recycling, and helping our
customers achieve zero waste.
HOW WE CREATE VALUE

We provide a recycling service to our
customers by collecting and processing
their waste streams of OCC and other
fibres. We also offer a range of services
such as recycling and environmental
audits and consultancy to help customers
manage their materials most efficiently,
with the aim of achieving zero waste.
This typically means that better value
can be achieved for the fibre, through
developing systems to maximise recovery
rates and source segregation. The fibre is
aggregated and sorted, and our recycling
operations support our paper operations
by providing fibre with a consistent
and well-defined quality, which in turn
enables our paper mills to produce paper
with higher performance characteristics.
Paper
We manufacture recycled paper,
principally the paper used to make
corrugated board. We also make some
other grades of paper, such as core board
and plasterboard liner. The majority of
the paper that we make is used by our
own packaging business.
We produce the paper required by our

packaging operations. We also sell papers
externally and we compete on the quality
of our product, while our scale and
efficiency mean that we remain cost
competitive. We undertake joint research
and development of innovative new
papers in partnership with our packaging
operations to optimise the performance
of the packaging. We have increased our
production of papers particularly suited
to making high-quality packaging, such
as white-top grades.
Plastic Packaging
Flexible packaging and dispensing

We design and manufacture plastic bags,
taps and fitments for use in bag-in-box
packaging for liquids. Our products are
used to transport beverages, concentrates,
chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Bag and
tap solutions can be used for industrial
containers, for dispensing beverages in
restaurants or as an end product, such
as a wine box. Our flexible packaging
business operates globally.
Rigid packaging
We design and manufacture rigid
plastic packaging products for the
transit of beverages, health care and
automotive products and in retail.
This business operates in Europe.
HOW WE CREATE VALUE

Specialist plastic packaging solutions
are designed in close partnership with
customers. The designs of taps and
fitments are often specific to the type
of liquid, in order to optimise filling and
dispensing. Once we have finalised
a design that fulfils our customers
requirements, we manufacture on a large
scale and distribute the product globally.
Our rigid plastic products are manufactured
in Europe for the European market, with
large scale operations in Bulgaria and
Slovakia. Our flexible plastic products are
manufactured in New Zealand, Thailand
and the US and are distributed globally.
4 Introduction
Letter from the Chief Executive
At DSSmith, balancing
sustainability is about
optimising the supply cycle.
Our emphasis on closed loop

recycling places DSSmith at
the heart of our customers
sustainability objectives.
Our economy depends on goods
getting to market, whilst reducing
waste, increasing efficiency, and
enabling consumer choice. In this regard,
packaging is more relevant than ever.
Many of our customers share the vision
I outlined last year, where we aligned our
sustainability reporting with the goals

of our biggest customers. The issues
affecting our company are the same as
those affecting all our partners in the
supply cycle brand owners, retailers,
and consumers. This means that building
a common understanding of how we
can cooperate to meet these challenges
is perhaps even more important than
focusing purely on those issues that
directly affect our business. Ultimately,
it is about making a contribution to a
more prosperous future for us all. Our
emphasis on closed loop recycling places
DSSmith at the heart of our customers
sustainability objectives. I am proud of
the part we are playing in improving the
supply cycles of our existing customers,
and excited by the potential we have
to do more. We have continued to
strengthen our relationships with
our stakeholders and I am satisfied
that we are meeting all their legitimate
expectations: delighting our customers
with innovative high-quality products;
ensuring the safety of all people who
work in or visit our factories; delivering
excellent shareholder returns;
contributing to local communities
through the business opportunities we
provide and by paying taxes when due;

having a strong relationship with our
European Works Council; and ensuring
our raw materials are responsibly sourced.
I am pleased to reaffirm DSSmiths
support for the Ten Principles of the
United Nations Global Compact in
the areas of Human Rights, Labour,
Environment and Anti-Corruption.
These align with our values, and in this
review we describe our performance in
those areas we believe are integral to
our business strategy.
I hope that in this review you will discover
more about our progress and be inspired
by our perpetual devotion to optimising
all aspects of consumer packaging,
reducing global CO2 emissions and
realising zero waste in the supply cycle.
Miles Roberts
Group Chief Executive
OUR STRATEGIC GOALS
To delight our
customers
To realise
the potential
of our people
To double
the size and
profitability
of the
business
See our Annual Report 2015 for more information
To lead
the way in
recycling
Introduction
Introduction
5
OUR VALUES
Our values describe the ways in which we strive to exceed the standards expected of us. They guide how we make decisions
and shape company policies and practices, driving both individual employee behaviour and organisational culture. To promote
a sense of personal ownership, our employees are encouraged to discuss these values and how they can make them relevant
to their workplaces. Our values reflect what we genuinely believe, and what we actually do.
Be caring
We take pride in what we do and care about our customers, our people and the world around us.
Be challenging
We are not afraid to challenge each other and ourselves constructively to find a better way forward.
Be trusted
We can always be trusted to deliver on our promises.
Be responsive
We seek new ideas and understanding and are quick to react to opportunities.
Be tenacious
We get things done.
STRATEGIC GOALS
To realise the
potential of
our people
To double the size

and profitability
of the business
Further improving
our quality standards
We do this by:
Creating a place where
people are proud to work
and give their best
We do this by:
Winning market share
and expanding into
new markets
Building a common culture
Driving innovation
Ensuring the safety of all
Building industry-leading
customer services
How we have delivered:

13 per cent reduction in
accident frequency rate
Building a resilient and

sustainable business
model
To delight
our customers
We do this by:
Delivering on all
our commitments

17 design centres built
or refurbished
15 per cent reduction

in lost-time accidents
Sustainability team
established
182 sites with zero

lost-time accidents
Responsive, bespoke
customer-led reporting
on sustainability matters
81 per cent response rate

to our employee survey

Volume growth
+3.1 per cent
Focused the business with
the disposal of one small
paper mill and two other
non-core businesses
To lead the
way in recycling
We do this by:
Building sustainability
into our decisions
Growing our recycling
platform across Europe
Acquired full control
of Italmaceri, an Italian
recycling business
Improved greenhouse
gas emissions in line
with 10 year plan
Improved our waste
to landfill ratio
6 Introduction
Market context
Expanding our footprint

and leadership position.
DSSmith is a leading provider of corrugated packaging
in Europe and of specialist plastic packaging worldwide,
supported by paper and recycling operations.
32
countries
Over
six billion
boxes sold
24,700
employees
Introduction
Introduction 7
INCPEN
Over the next 10 years, the rate of
change in the way we live is likely to
keep accelerating. The products and
services we buy will change too and
that means their packaging will have
to evolve to match. Just think of a few
of the likely challenges:
Unpredictable weather will affect
harvests. Food scarcity will become
an issue for more people. Packaging
plays a critical role in extending
food storage.
Internet shopping and multichannel delivery systems offer huge
opportunities e.g. if a pack does not
need to fit on a supermarket shelf, it
could be taller, thinner, spherical or
any shape a designer can dream up.
Openability and legibility will
become even more important
in ageing societies.
Portion control can help tackle

obesity. This may mean smaller
portions and therefore more
packaging but a worthwhile use
of material in helping prevent a
serious problem.
The opportunities are endless.
Business, however, relies on
policymakers to stimulate innovation
rather than impose restrictions. In
theory, the European Commissions
Circular Economy Package should help
make more efficient use of energy,
materials and water. INCPEN is helping
this to happen by explaining the critical
role that packaging plays in enabling
the supply cycle. We also explain why
the focus on waste which has
dominated European packaging policy
for many years is not appropriate.
Provided they are used appropriately
most types of packaging are ecofriendly because they each protect
far more resources than they use

and prevent far more waste than
they generate. In 10 years time
there are likely to be exciting
new packs that will make an even
more positive contribution to
sustainable development.
Jane Bickerstaff
Director INCPEN
INCPEN - the Industry Council
for research on Packaging and
the Environment is a group of
manufacturers and retailers
from across the supply chain
who work together to promote
responsible packaging for
sustainable supply chains.
DSSmith is a member of INCPEN.
INCPEN: The only environmental organisation whose members span the complete supply chain
www.incpen.org
www.facebook.com/incpenorg
twitter.com/@incpen
Manufacturing
presence
Europe
Austria
Belgium
Bosnia
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Hungary
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Macedonia
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Serbia
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
Rest of the world
New Zealand
Thailand
United States
(as at 31 August 2015)
8 Introduction
Supply Cycle Thinking
At DSSmith, were driven

by the changing needs
of our customers.
In every process carried out, we offer integrated
solutions that serve the entire Supply Cycle, creating
simplicity in an otherwise complex supply chain.
OUR CUSTOMER SUPPLY CYCLE
Transport
cost
reductions
DSSmith
Recycling
More
recycling
Consumer
More
sales
Manufacturer
SUPPLY
CYCLE
Shop
Regional
distribution
centres
Faster
packing
lines
Logistics
provider
Cost
savings
Introduction
VALUE PROPOSITION
Through innovation and collaboration,
our strategic approach considers every
aspect of our customers economic,
social and environmental needs. From
the factory floor to the shop door, our
solutions allow cost reductions at every
stage of the cycle. As a strategic partner
with cross-industry expertise, our
customers can be confident that we will
make a positive impact to their business
and deliver a step change in performance.
THE SUPPLY CYCLE

When you start thinking beyond the
immediate customer and consider the
whole supply cycle, you see a different
picture, resulting in opportunities for
integrated and more efficient solutions.
Many organisations think of their supply
chains as a straight line. But if we can
change the thinking from linear to circular,
new opportunities emerge. Information
is constantly being created, shared and
exchanged, from consignment tracking
to customer feedback on social media.
Our perspective gives us a head start in
anticipating and solving problems better
than our competitors. With a range of
expertise in design, production and
recycling, we can offer innovative
solutions and great service which enables
us to cater to all our customers packaging
and waste management needs.
Our offer encompasses the full packaging
supply cycle. We have invested heavily
in our capacity to design, source and
manufacture packaging that leads the
industry in terms of performance, and we
have also grown our capacity to recycle
packaging waste and thereby to mitigate
the downstream environmental impacts.
In our Recycling operations we close the
loop, and the fibres become a valuable
and sustainable raw material once again.
Introduction
9
CIRCULAR ECONOMY:
SUPPLY CYCLE THINKING
In principle, the business case for the
circular economy in the packaging
industry is easy to make. However,
we are barely even at the start of the
journey towards the circular economy.
So, what are the main problems we need
to overcome? The complexity of long,
convoluted supply chains in a traditional
multi-channel retail environment.
Globalisation, fuelled by digital and
mobile technology, coupled with
customer demands for quality and
service that are placing manufacturers,
suppliers and retailers under intense
market pressure. In this environment,
packaging is more relevant than ever,
and the benefits of a strategic and
sustainable packaging solution that
can lighten the load has never been
more attractive.
This is where the Power of Less
comes into play, helping to turn good
CSR intentions into best practice.
The Power of Less is about reducing
complexity and cost, managing risk
and supporting growth. This focus on
optimising performance underpins the
shift in mind-set from linear to circular,
from supply chain to supply cycle. In
supply chains, there are many potential
leakage points, but tackling them in
isolation can sometimes be worse than
failing to identify them in the first place.
To avoid falling foul of the law of
unintended consequences, any
successful approach needs to be
strategic and systemic.
As supply cycle strategists, we are
committed to helping customers shed
the constraints of linear models and drive
efficiencies. Closing the loop requires
that all the segments in the supply cycle
cooperate to achieve the right balance of
product performance and environmental
responsibility. Design, logistics, business
models and waste are tackled in the
round, transforming sustainable
packaging into a positive enabler of
the circular economy.
CUSTOMER JOURNEY
We have streamlined the packaging
design process into a completely new
way of working across our organisation.
We call this PackRight. PackRight is
a systematic way of working with
our customers to produce results of
substantial value to their business.
Each customer experiences the same
customer journey when doing business
with us, wherever they are in the world.
Our Impact Centres engage customers,
and bring to life the reality of practical
in-store environments, and they
challenge preconceived views of
packaging as just a box.
This interactive process enables
customers to assess for themselves what
the right packaging solution could help
them achieve. In our PackRight Centres,
customers co-create and design the right
solutions for their products, supported
by proprietary DSSmith tools, services
and skilled individuals. Our PackRight
Centres are professional yet creative
environments, where customers are
invited to attend workshops and project
launches and hold progress meetings.
View our Supply Cycle Thinking

at www.dssmith.com/company/
who-we-are/supply-cycle-strategists
10 Introduction
Stakeholder engagement
We listen to our stakeholders

to understand their issues
and expectations.
Through our products, we
interact with millions of
consumers worldwide every
day. Within our communities,
we are a significant local
employer. This is why we
listen to our stakeholders.
Their feedback helps us to understand
the issues of greatest concern. We
encourage and welcome feedback
through any channels our stakeholders
want to use: formal and informal
meetings, community events, or by
invitation. Our engagement activities
are guided by a Code of Conduct
which sets out the principles that
all employees are obliged to follow in

their professional relationships. This
also helps our stakeholders understand
what standards of behaviour they can
expect from us. Significant stakeholder
groups for DSSmith include:
CUSTOMERS
Each of our businesses is managed locally
within its markets. This ensures that
there is a natural and continual dialogue
with our customers. Creating value
sustainably for our customers has
become a critical part of our value
offering. We have regular face-to-face
meetings at managerial levels and with
senior executives, provide technical
service and support, and use satisfaction
Employee induction
Peter White, MD at Ralegh, together with his management team, revamped their
employee induction package in 2014. This comprehensive update involved every
aspect of employee and company behaviour, and covered our Code of Conduct
and Operating Framework, as well as broader social responsibility aspects such as
the sites smoking policy and Healthy Hearts campaign, and their relationships
with, and responsibilities to, the wider community. It was so well received that
it was subsequently delivered to every employee on site, even those who had
worked there for more than fifteen years. This occurred over three weeks
in 2014, and as a result Ralegh can proudly proclaim more than 60 hours of
training on a broad range of sustainability topics such as human rights.
60 sites
Number of locations with a Community Engagement programme
surveys to gather feedback, and we

particularly welcome the opportunity
to participate in customer events to
enhance sustainability and innovation.
Our customers have overwhelmingly
told us that our focus on the supply cycle,
and on accurately and transparently
describing the impacts and benefits that
our packaging and waste management
can have within their supply cycle, is
the right approach.
INVESTORS
The investment community is a key
stakeholder group. Communication of
information and insight enables a full
appreciation of our companys business
activities, strategy and prospects, and
Introduction
allows the market to make an informed

judgement about the fair value and
appropriate ownership of our shares.
Shareholder engagement is stimulated
through financial reporting and trading
updates, accompanied by management
presentations and conference calls.
These are available as audio replays
and in transcript via our website,
together with archived Annual Reports.
We hold an Annual General Meeting
for all shareholders, and conduct a
programme of regular meetings and
site trips with investors, equity analysts
and financial journalists.
It is our policy that communications with
investors are conducted by a limited
number of individuals nominated by the
Chief Executive under the companys
Disclosure Policy. This is to ensure that
information provided to the market is
strictly in accordance with the companys
regulatory obligations.
SUPPLIERS
Through our central procurement
function, we have frequent dialogue with
our strategic suppliers. We ensure regular
face-to-face meetings at managerial
levels and with senior executives,
collaboration on reverse logistics and
backhauling, and on recycling projects.
Increasingly, we are seeking strategic
partnerships with suppliers who can
demonstrate that they take their
corporate responsibilities seriously,
for example through establishing
policies and programmes to transparently
share sustainability related data.
Introduction
11
EMPLOYEES
CONSUMERS
We maintain regular contact with

trade unions and, where applicable,
employee forums and works councils.
Our relationship with the European Works
Council provides a channel to discuss and
to better understand pan-European
developments and issues for employees.
Maintaining a committed and engaged
workforce is central to our vision and
two-way dialogue is facilitated via the
following channels: regular newsletters,
videos and senior leadership webcasts on
our intranet, leadership visits to sites and
site open days, team briefings, employee
appraisal, training, and grievance
procedures. In October 2014 we ran our
third Group-wide employee survey which
had a response rate of 81 per cent. The
main areas for improvement which this
found are discussed later in this document.
Our primary channel for engagement

with consumers is via our website,
which is one of our main tools for sharing
information with all of our stakeholders.
During 2014 we revised our social media
policy, and our social media sites are
open to anyone wishing to discuss
any interests related to DSSmith.
You can follow our feeds, participate
in discussions and initiate new topics
online. We want you to engage with us,
so dont be afraid to like our social media
channels. We have Twitter, YouTube,
LinkedIn and Facebook pages, and wed
love to hear from you.
INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS AND

TRADE BODIES
DSSmith is a member of the UK-based
the Industry Council for research on
Packaging and the Environment (INCPEN),
an association which undertakes
research on the effects of packaging.
We cooperate with trade associations
to coordinate environmental, legislative
and technical initiatives. These include:
collaboration on collection and recycling
projects, policy direction to ensure
packaging makes a positive contribution
to sustainability and consumer
information and education campaigns.
We also contribute data to the
European Federation of Corrugated
Board Manufacturers (FEFCO) and
the Confederation of European
Paper Industries (CEPI) Containerboard
lifecycle assessment a triennial study
to establish the carbon footprint of
corrugated board.
REGULATORS AND
POLICYMAKERS
Our focus in public policy development
is to reinforce the initiatives conducted
by the industry associations and trade
bodies of which we are members.
We facilitate meetings and plant tours.
OUR DSSMITH OFFICIAL

SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS
These channels are monitored
24/7 and are approved by our
corporate & communications network.
Connect with us at:
www.linkedin.com/company/ds-smith
www.linkedin.com/company/
ds-smith-recycling
www.linkedin.com/company/
ds-smith-plastics-division
twitter.com/dssmithpack
twitter.com/dssmithrecycle
twitter.com/dssplastics
www.youtube.com/user/dssmithgroup
www.facebook.com/dssmith.group
www.facebook.com/dssrecycling
12 Introduction
Materiality and risk
Effectively managing our

material issues and risks
ensures a robust strategy is in
place to deliver our targets.
MATERIALITY ANALYSIS
We last conducted a formal materiality
analysis, informed through stakeholder
engagement, in January 2014. This was
a useful activity which allowed us to
interact with diverse stakeholders whom
we may not encounter during normal
operations, such as academics and
NGOs. We intend to repeat this exercise
biennially, and to augment this analysis
with pulse surveys of those stakeholders
with whom we enjoy more frequent
contact, such as customers, employees
and suppliers.
RISK REVIEW
Identifying, assessing and managing
risks is integral to the way we run our
business, and we have structured our
risk assessment processes to include
sustainability matters in our risk
management process in order to ensure
involvement up to Board level. We have
clear risk management objectives and an
established strategy to deliver these
through core risk-managed processes.
At a strategic level our risk management
objectives are to identify our principal
risks and to formulate actions to ensure
that our Corporate Plan and strategic
priorities are aligned with our appetite
for, and ability to tolerate, these risks
over a rolling five year period.
Risk identification and assessment is an
integral part of our corporate planning
process, with the objective that the
Board continues to have improved
Material waste reduction

Each year, 125 million worth of paper is wasted or lost during the production of
corrugated cardboard. To address this, we initiated a material waste reduction
initiative across all of our regions. Based on the shared knowledge within our
extensive network, operating standards were re-defined and are being rolled
out to more than 80 sites. Over one hundred examples of best practice have been
identified and communicated internally to all sites. Specific projects are still
on-going. To raise awareness of this initiative amongst all of our employees,
a Waste Challenge campaign was launched and the best and most effective
solutions are publicised in a monthly Waste Awareness poster campaign using
designs by our own employees.
125m
Potential savings from reducing waste in corrugated production
Introduction
Introduction
13
Plastics (Foam Products)

DSSmith Foam Products is using smart materials and design to divert waste
from landfill with environmentally friendly products such as the HOTBIN.
This container, made out of ARPRO Expanded Polypropylene, decomposes
food and garden waste into organic compost in a process called hot composting.
Its design and function result in less waste going to landfill. It is re-usable and
100 per cent recyclable. The HOTBIN was invented by Tony Callaghan, a dedicated
gardener who applied commercial composting methods to the domestic market
and created a more efficient alternative to his overflowing cold composting bins.
HOTBIN is capable of composting more types of waste, more quickly, without
the problems of odours and pests.
www.hotbincomposting.com
visibility of the Groups principal risks

and uncertainties, the consequences of
those risks and the controls in place to
manage them.
We recognise we are subject to many
general risks such as changes in
socioeconomic conditions, political,
financial, general regulatory and legislative
changes including events that we cannot
influence, but whose effect can impact on
our ability to deliver our Corporate Plan.
The risks we face, in the markets we
choose to operate in, do not change
significantly from year to year, but their
influence on our Corporate Plan can vary
in magnitude and frequency and this
influences the way we seek to reduce or
exploit risks in the pursuit of our objectives.
We continue to recognise the significant
interdependencies between our principal
risks. Our connections diagram highlights
how the consequences of one risk can be
a potential trigger of, or influence on,
another. By understanding these
relationships, we are better placed to
ensure that the strategy and the
measures taken to manage the delivery
of targets are robust and facilitate
stronger discussions of risk and the
appropriateness of our current controls.
MANAGING OUR CONNECTED RISKS
Acquisition
Strategy Risks
Securities of
Supply Risks
Integration
Risks
Sustainability
Risks
Legal /
Regulatory /
Governance
Risks
Market
Consolidation
Risks
Commercial
Business
Differentiation
Risks
Capital
Markets and
Liquidity Risks
Eurozone
Macroeconomic
and Deflationary
Risks
Size of circle = Risk impact

Line thickness = Strength of connection
14 Governance
Governance
We are committed
to measuring and valuing
what our customers value.
Last year, I talked about the
importance of stakeholder
participation in our Materiality
Analysis. On reflection, this
represented quite a change
of emphasis for us.
Following discussions with senior
colleagues, we made a firm commitment
to measure and value what our customers
value, and to report on those sustainability
aspects that mattered most to them. In
some ways, this was a logical continuation
of our perpetual devotion to great
customer service. But in others, it raised
some challenging questions. When we
said that we wanted to publish data on
the topics considered important by our
stakeholders, the response was often
But how can we possibly please a
customer base as diverse and varied
as ours? Our customers include almost
every high profile brand owner and retailer
in Europe, the market leaders in sectors
as diverse as food and drink, industrial
goods, technology, cosmetics, and
consumer goods. In sustainability
terms, their material issues really
do cover the full spectrum.
For example, our environmental impacts

related to water are actually more about
water purity and quality than about the
volume of water we use, and we can
proudly say that all the water we use
in our mills is recycled on site and is
returned to the ecosystem cleaner than
when it was abstracted. However, many
stakeholders express their interest and
concern based on absolute volumes of
water used. This is just one example of
what weve come to realise is actually
a much more complex balance of issues
and priorities.
During the last 12 months I have been
delighted to sponsor our relationship with
Keep Britain Tidy. The common interest
between less litter and more recycling is
plain to see, but what encourages me
most about this initiative is how our
employees are giving back to their local
communities, improving green spaces and
amenities and enhancing the natural
beauty of their environment. Through
initiatives like these, it is pleasing to
consider how closing the loop can also
work at the level of social responsibility.
Peter McGuinness
Chair of the Group
Sustainability Committee
Governance
Governance
15
GROUP ANNUAL REPORTING FRAMEWORK

J U LY
Trading
m tg.
g
din
Tra t g.
m
Sus t
er
pla
nn
na
in
GM T
m tg.
Sal
cle
yp
vi
ew
Tr
a
mtding
g.
st
Bo
a
mt rd
g.
JAN
er n
anc
GMT
mt g.
GMT .
mtg
ar
f ye
Hal sults
re
Board
m t g.
UA R
DECE
MB E
Financial results and

reports to investors
Fullyear results
Trading meetings
Each division provides
monthly updates
Halfyear results
Sustainability
governance
Four Sustainability
Committee meetings
Trading updates
Board meetings
Seven Board meetings
a year
Group Management
Team (GMT)
Eleven GMT meetings
a year
GM t
m
g
din
Tra tg.
m
Trading
mtg.
ER
ov
yg
li t
We disclose our Climate Change

impacts to the Carbon Disclosure
Project, and our score in 2014 was
85C, an improvement of 22 points
over 2013.
g.
bi
As DS Smith continues to grow, there

is greater demand for centralised
communication of sustainability data.
However, DS Smith is fundamentally
a Group consisting of local factories
that were primarily established to
serve local customers. Our policy is to
disclose data in aggregate where we
can, with the emphasis on our
environmental impacts. The reporting
frameworks we use to achieve this are
shown below.
RY
na
Tr
a
mtding
g.
Bo
a
mt rd
g.
s
Su
BR
Trading
mtg.
re
GM t
m
FE
GMT
m t g.
M
p e r i d -y e a r
f. r e
view
Trading
m tg.
r ev iew
t ar
nt
ai
g.
Bo ar d
m tg.
ar y
Budge
e
Ta l
o r m a nc e r ev iew s
CH
g
din
Tra tg.
m
GMT .
mtg
MAR
es
BER
cy
Per f
Board
m t g.
oc
AG M
Bo
ov
GM T .
mtg
APR
Tra
m ding
tg
.
TEM
a te
nu
Cor p or
yg
SEP
Bo
a
mt rd
g.
Bonus p
aym
ent
ili t
g
din
Tra tg.
m
ta
v iew
ab
Tra
m ding
tg
.
re
LTI
e
rg
ain
nc
IL
G
m M
t
T .
g
AU
GM T
mtg
.
ST
GM T .
mtg
Bo ar d
m tg.
AY
Full ye a r
r e s ul t s
OB E
OCT
JUN
TRANSPARENCY
Talent and
performance
review process
Talent and
performance reviews
OV
We are also a member of the London

Stock Exchange FTSE4Good index,
an international responsibility
performance benchmark.
Corporate planning
cycle
Divisional strategy
development
Board approval
Budgetary process
Divisional budget
development
Board approval
During 2014, we became an A/B

member of the Supplier Ethical Data
Exchange (SEDEX) and we continue to
share supply chain data with our
customers and third party auditors.
Bonus targets and

payments
Salary reviews
16 Governance
Governance continued
STRATEGIC OVERSIGHT
TARGETS
To support these goals, we will:
Sustainability is emphasised throughout

our corporate governance framework,
starting from our Board of Directors.
The Board is responsible for reviewing
and approving the Groups Environmental
and Social Responsibility policies.
Executive responsibility for sustainability
sits within the Group Management Team.
Its members are responsible for overseeing
the effective implementation of policies
in areas under their control.
We believe that it is only by measuring our

impacts that we can find the right balance
of sustainability. Where it is clear, we set
ourselves challenging performance
targets to improve continuously.
Continue disclosure of our carbon

footprint performance to CDP.
We believe that by focusing on improving

our performance against key performance
measures our managers and employees
will be better able to understand their
potential to contribute to the greater
sustainability of our business.
Ensure that all raw materials

are sourced responsibly and
from sustainable sources.
The Group Sustainability Committee

meets quarterly to review the
management processes, targets and
strategies that address our environmental
and social risks and opportunities, and
ensure compliance with the Groups
environmental and social responsibilities
and commitments. This governance
structure ensures that measures are
put in place to consider carbon emissions,
energy usage, water consumption,
waste and product responsibility.
Our targets, set by the Board, require

that, in relation to production, we will:
Reduce our CO2 emissions from fossil
fuels by 20 per cent over the 10 years
to 2020.
Reduce our water usage in our paper
mills by 20 per cent over the 10 years
to 2020.
Reduce the amount of production
rejects sent to landfill by 20 per cent
over the 10 years to 2020.
Work towards 100 per cent

certification to ISO 14001 and
OHSAS 18001 standards.
Continue our engagement with the

UN Global Compact to promote and
support the implementation of its
10 principles.
Each production site is required to
implement an environmental
management system which is appropriate
to its level of activity. At present, 119
manufacturing sites have an ISO 14001
certification. Each production site that
converts or trades in wood fibre or other
wood derivative products is mandated
to pursue a recognised certification
programme leading to a chain of custody
for responsible fibre sourcing. Once
complete, this will result in 100 per cent
of relevant production sites holding a
certification from a credible external body.
COMPOSITION OF GROUP SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE
Director of
Sustainability
Communications
Director
Group Health &

Safety Director
Group
Regulatory
Affairs
HR Operations
Director
Group IT
Director
Packaging
Marketing
Director
Group Technical
Director
Group Tax Manager
Group Head of Risk
Packaging
Commercial
Director
Head of
Procurement
Operations
Governance
Governance
17
COMMITMENTS TO
INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
Espaol
DSSmith subscribes to the following

international standards and guidelines:
United Nations Global Compact.
United Nations Declaration of Human
Rights and the Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
International Labour Organization
(ILO) eight Fundamental Conventions.
Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development
(OECD) Guidelines for Multinational
Enterprises.
Dansk
suomi
All our employees are encouraged

to report suspected misconduct or
unethical behaviour directly to their own
supervisor, Human Resources or the
Group General Counsel. Our employees
may also report their concerns in
confidentiality to a dedicated hotline, an
external service through which anyone
can confidentially and anonymously
report any issues.
Code of Conduct
Deutsch
Roman
Eesti
Lietuvos
ETHICS AND COMPLIANCE

Ethical business conduct and compliance
with local, national and international
legislation are fundamental to our way
of doing business. We believe that an
ethical approach will lead to repeat
business and protect our reputation,
thereby preserving our license to operate.
Monitoring ethics and compliance
and providing annual training to our
employees are the responsibility of
our Company Secretarial department.
Polski
Franais
Latvijas Svenska
etina
Nederlands
Magyar Italiano
Slovencina
Find out more about our Code of Conduct online

www.dssmith.com/people/culture/code-of-conduct/
CODE OF CONDUCT
The DSSmith Code of Conduct codifies
our ethical position on key topics. It
describes common rules which apply
to all of our employees, and provides
guidance on our approach to ethical
business practices, environmental values,
and human and labour rights. It is made
available to all employees as part of their
induction, and as at 2014 it has been
translated into 19 languages.
COMPETITION LAW
COMPLIANCE PROGRAMME
An extensive e-learning programme
has been created to increase awareness
of the regulations on competition law
and compliance. The target group for
this e-learning covers all employees
with purchasing, marketing and sales
responsibility. A total of 4,830 employees
were trained in this programme during
2014, with a 99.87 per cent pass rate.
Energy efficiency
During 2014, six of our German corrugated box plants were certified to the ISO 50001 energy management system.
In 2015 all of the remaining box plants will follow suit. The benefit is to have a standard framework in energy calculation,
planning and consumption monitoring. The biggest energy consumers in all categories, such as machines, equipment
and buildings, were identified and analysed for best practice to reduce energy consumption. Employees were trained
in sustainable thinking. The objective is to improve energy efficiency even further.
ISO 50001
6 German corrugated box plants certified
18
Economic Sustainability
We create opportunities
for trade and employment,
providing value to
wider society.
Our long-term prosperity is contingent on managing
our business prudently in the short and medium-term.
This means ensuring that we are consistently
delivering economic value to our shareholders.
The cash flows our businesses generate today are
available to invest for tomorrow this fundamental
reality underpins our economic sustainability.
14.6%
Return on Capital Employed
Economic
Sustainability
Our industry requires constant capital

investment, in innovation and also
in maintenance and repairs. Our
shareholders also have a right to a return
on their investment, and by delivering
on this promise we will continue to earn
their support towards our long-term
growth ambitions. We also contribute
tremendous value to the communities
in which we operate, and to wider society.
We do this by creating opportunities for
trade and employment, contributing to
the wealth, vitality and stability of our
communities. Our relentless drive for a
safe and fulfilling workplace for all our
employees also has economic benefits.
The provision of more highly skilled
jobs enables employees to earn higher
salaries. Modernisation results in
increased productivity and lower
overall operating costs.
19
Brompton Bikes
The Brompton Bike Company turned to DSSmith when looking for new
packaging. Bromptons folding bikes are sold in 45 export markets as well as
directly to retailers in the UK, USA, Canada, China and Ireland. They have become
a symbol of modern commuting for city dwellers looking to use more sustainable
modes of transport. DSSmith was challenged to create a corrugated packaging
solution to match the quality of the product.
The bikes new packaging employs creative use of an extended glue flange and
precise flap arrangements. The internal base flaps fold to form a supportive yet
cushioning structure which offers extra protection. On opening, the bike is
presented to the customer in a logical and pleasing manner. This has enabled
Brompton to dispense with tape, making the user experience more aesthetically
appealing, and the packaging easier to recycle. Tony Foster, DSSmiths UK sales
and marketing director, said: This is a pack which really demonstrates how
working closely with the customer produces the highest quality packaging. By
taking our cue from the fold-up features of the bike, we have produced a pack
which is strong and protects the product in transit, but also emphasises the
qualities of the bike itself.
PROCUREMENT
Overview
Our central procurement activities cover
a spend of nearly 2.1 billion. We expect
our suppliers to support our sustainability
objectives. Our procurement activities are
structured by category, with the objective
of ensuring that we use the strength of
the Group to fully leverage our combined
spend and get best value, defined in terms
of quality, cost, service and innovation.
We aim to improve value by:
Reducing the cost of products,
services and materials of the
required specification.
Identifying opportunities to
optimise specifications.
Maximising cash flow by minimising
raw material inventory and spares
and improving payment terms.
Maximising the efficiency of the
payment process.
Developing sophisticated sourcing
strategies to enable us to leverage
innovation throughout the
supply cycle.
Defining and communicating an
ethical procurement policy and
managing compliance.
The team also works with suppliers to

ensure compliance with the DSSmith
Global Supplier Standards. We welcome
engagement with all our suppliers, and
if you have questions or opportunities
you would like to share with us, please
do not hesitate to contact us by email
at [email protected].
Paper
In 2014 our Sustainability Committee
demanded greater transparency in our
paper supply chain, their fibre sourcing,
CO2 emissions and environmental
standards. Responsible fibre sourcing is
one of our material issues. We created
an online customer questionnaire and,
through our central paper sourcing

team, we explored a complex supply chain
involving 37 distinct paper manufacturers
and more than 75 mills. However,
whilst all the paper manufacturers we
approached registered, only one third
responded with fully auditable data.
Consequently, we will increase our efforts
to improve their response rate over the
next year, in order to ensure that we
continue to provide our customers with
products that we know are sourced from
sustainable forests, legally harvested,
or best of all made from recovered
materials that we ourselves have helped
to recycle.
20
Economic Sustainability continued
Raw Materials
Our raw materials procurement is focused
primarily on consumable commodities
used in our manufacturing operations.
Approximately 175 million of spend
is broken down into the following
categories: Performance & Technical
Chemicals, Commodity Chemicals, Starch,
Adhesives, Inks, Pigments & Coatings,
Dyes, Print Stereos/Clichs, Pulp, Baling
Wire and Expanded Polypropylene/
Expanded Polystyrene.
Energy
Many of our production facilities
generate their own steam and electricity,
and we purchase fuel, electricity and
steam from external suppliers. The
energy procurement function is
responsible for buying energy, including
fossil fuels, and hedging with regard to
energy prices, as well as the trading of
green certificates and the monitoring
of emission trading trends. Energy
efficiency specialists help to find and
exploit opportunities to save energy.
Transport
The role of transport procurement is
to challenge suppliers to ensure value
creation. Our long-term strategy reduces
total costs and the carbon footprint of
logistics, and drives health and safety
standards. We take a balanced approach
and stimulate our transport providers to
bring forward new innovations, such as
aerodynamics, alternative fuels and
multimodal solutions.
We stimulate our key suppliers

to bring forward new innovations
as well as those that we bring to
the table, such as aerodynamics,
alternative fuels and multimodal
solutions.
Capital Equipment and

Industrial Goods
A central team purchases our capital
equipment anything from a palletiser
to an entire paper machine with
average spend of between 35,000
and 5 million. We engage with technical
and operational stakeholders to ensure
the required specifications are met.
We manage the spend on spares and
the engineering services and support
required to run our businesses. Suppliers
are selected based on their performance
and their sustainability credentials.
Indirects
Indirect costs typically constitute 2030
per cent of our spend. Indirects are usually
bought for internal consumption and
spend categories include: travel, IT, HR
services, professional services, facilities
management and marketing services.
SEDEX
company reputation and improve supply

chain practices. Sedex has two main aims:
To ease the burden on suppliers
facing multiple audits, questionnaires
and certifications.
To drive improvements in the ethical
performance of global supply chains.
The core system is a secure, online
database which allows members to
store, share and report on information
in four key areas:
Labour standards
Health & Safety
Environment
Business ethics
Since launch in 2004, over 38,000
organisations from more than 150
countries have made Sedex their
platform of choice for exchanging
ethical supply chain data.
DSSmith is a member of Sedex, a

not-for-profit membership organisation
dedicated to driving improvements
in ethical and responsible business
practices in global supply chains. As
the largest collaborative platform for
sharing ethical supply chain data, Sedex
is an innovative and effective supply
chain management solution, helping
DSSmith to reduce risk, protect our
Continuous Excellence
Fibre is the largest cost category in our paper mills. Improving the efficiency of
our fibre utilisation also has additional environmental benefits, such as improving
the efficiency of our effluent treatment plants, and waste management, supply
chain, and product quality management systems. For these reasons, each mill
carefully measures fibre yield (the ratio of input fibre to output volume).
As part of our Continuous Excellence Programme, projects to improve fibre
yield have focused on identifying and minimising losses, and the recovery
and re-use of fibre. The results achieved have been impressive: 15,000 tonnes
of fibre were saved, which translates as 1,000 fewer lorries each year on the
roads around our mills.
Economic
Sustainability
21
Plastics (Injection Moulded Products)

DSSmiths Injection Moulded Products
service offer includes a mobile recycling
truck that collects plastic crates from
our customers facilities at the end of
their useful life, and regrinds them into
a 100 per cent recycled raw material.
When Portugal-based Unicer Brewery
approached us for replacement
beverage crates we were able to
delight this customer by relocating our
automatic unloaders, recycling and
moulding equipment to a local bottle
Once the equipment was set up,

bottles were unloaded and separated
from the crates and transferred to
glass and plastics grinders. Regrinded
plastic was cleaned, recycled and
moulded into new crates branded
At Glass Bottle Factory
1st LIFE-CYCLE
New crates are shipped
to Unicer Brewery
with Unicers logo. Glass was cleaned,

recycled and blown into new bottles
by the bottling company, and the
new bottles were loaded into the
new crates onsite using our loading
machinery. Our trucks delivered the
new bottled crates to Unicers brewery
ready to be filled, and the recycled
plastic beverage crates and glass
bottles started their second life-cycle.
factory and we provided a full-circle

service to Unicer. This generated
savings in labour and material cost
and resulted in a shorter lead-time.
Crates & bottles are separated
1st LIFE-CYCLE
Duration: 9 years
SUPPLY-CYCLE
Duration: 9 years
Regrinded & recycled
Moulded into new crates
New bottles are loaded in crates
Bottled crates are sent to brewery

2nd LIFE-CYCLE
New crates
Temporarily installs automatic

loader & unloader, recycling
and moulding equipment
RETAILER
Brewery
Glass Bottle
Factory
2nd LIFE-CYCLE
Brewery Retailers
END OF USEFUL LIFE

Crates and bottles are sent
to glass factory to be
regrinded & recycled
22 Environment
Environment
We inform our customers

and train sales staff about
environmental and social
responsibility issues.
The core of our business is our perpetual
devotion to providing products and solutions
that are made from renewable materials and
our expertise lies in keeping natural resources
productively employed within a closed loop.
206.8kg CO2e
per tonne
of production
Environment
PACKAGING REPUTATION
Innovation and product
responsibility
The core of our business is our perpetual
devotion to providing products and
solutions that are made from renewable
materials and our expertise lies in
keeping natural resources productively
employed within a closed loop. We
develop our products, services and
processes in collaboration with our
customers. Whilst most of our customer
feedback relates to products, service,
delivery and prices, issues related to
innovation, product development
and sustainability are also frequently
mentioned. We use face-to-face sessions
to inform our customers and train our
sales staff in environmental and social
responsibility issues. Training sessions
include practical exercises emphasising
the relevance of sustainability issues in
all of our daily work. We are also striving
to make our paper and board products
lighter, without compromising on product
quality, so as to save on materials and
energy in production and transportation.
Product safety
Our in-house controls and safety systems
cover our processes from the product
development stage through raw material
sourcing to delivery of the finished
products. Some of our packaging
materials come into contact with food.
To guarantee that consumer demands
and food safety regulations are fully
met, all our units producing food contact
materials follow Good Manufacturing
Practice (GMP). This helps us to ensure
product safety. We provide our customers
with information on products hygiene
and safety aspects through declarations
of compliance and other documentation,
and we have effective processes in place
for testing product compliance and
safety. We work with our suppliers to
ensure that we only use chemicals that
are safe and in accordance with the
applicable regulations (e.g. REACH).
The best way to achieve lasting

improvements in packaging
performance is to engage
with customers and suppliers.
Environment
23
CARBON FOOTPRINT
Our carbon footprint
Since last years report, we have
incorporated additional greenhouse
gases in our emissions data. In accordance
with United Kingdom statutory reporting
requirements,we now express our carbon
target in terms of CO2e. We are pleased
to have achieved a reduction in our overall
CO2e emissions per tonne.
Our Scope 1 emissions have increased as
a consequence of our acquisition of
the Combined Heat and Power (CHP)
installation at our paper mill in Italy,
which resulted in a corresponding
drop in Scope2 emissions. Another
consequence of this has been a
greater power generation capacity,
and a resultant increase in exports
of electricity to the grid, which have
also contributed to an overall reduction
in absolute emissions apportioned to
internal production.
The large impact of the CHP installations
at our paper mills masks the many
improvements across our packaging
and plastics plants which are of a smaller
scale but are nevertheless important.
Of the 155 sites where a year-on-year
comparison is possible, 102 have achieved
reductions in absolute scope 1 emissions.
This is the consequence of greater
production efficiency and continued
investments in more efficient boilers.
Analysis of our performance in reducing
scope 2 emissions tells a similar story,
with 79 sites achieving an absolute
reduction. This has largely been driven
by initiatives to replace halogen lighting
with LED lighting.
The figure for total production, used to

normalise our total emissions, water and
waste figures, has reduced slightly since
the previous year. This is primarily due to
consolidation of our assets and a shift
in business mix. A number of recycling
depots were closed during 2014, and this
has outweighed increases in production
in our packaging and paper making
businesses. As a result, our emissions
per tonne figure is lower than the
improvement in absolute values.
This has also affected the amount of
effluent water we have discharged. In
absolute terms, there was an increase
due to record production across a
number of paper mills, but the overall
denominator of all production across the
Group results in a worsened figure for our
target, taken on a like-for-like basis. As
indicated last year, this particular target is
becoming less relevant as we focus more
closely on the role water and steam play
as carriers and stores of thermal energy.
Future efforts will concentrate on
reducing water throughput per tonne
of production, and in the coming year this
is likely to result in a recalibrated target.
As our business mix across Europe
continues to evolve, the impact of those
operations which still rely on landfill will
become even further diluted, and our
original waste to landfill target will
increasingly also lose its relevance at
a Group level. We continue to report
our carbon emissions to the Carbon
Disclosure Project (CDP), an international
non-governmental organisation
dedicated to reducing global greenhouse
gas emissions.
OUR ENVIRONMENTAL TARGETS

For 2014/15, our environmental targets have remained unchanged. Relative
to production, we aim to:
Reduce our CO2 equivalent (CO2 e) emissions from fossil fuels by 20 per cent
over the 10 years to 2020;
Reduce our water usage in our paper mills by 20 per cent over the 10 years
to 2020; and
Reduce the amount of production rejects sent to landfill by 20 per cent over
the 10 years to 2020.
24 Environment
Environment continued
This allows us to demonstrate our

commitment to lowering our carbon
footprint, by measuring and disclosing
our carbon intensity per tonne of
production. This year, DSSmith for the
first time participated in the FEFCO/CEPI
Containerboard Lifecycle Assessment.
This triennial study is the most
comprehensive assessment of the
environmental load of corrugated
packaging, and we eagerly await the
publication of this study later in 2015.
We also believe that sustainable
forest management plays a vital role
in mitigating climate change. Trees
absorb CO2 from the atmosphere and
act as a store of carbon. Our emphasis
on recycling each fibre as many times
as possible thereby reducing the need
to fell more trees is our way of making
a vital contribution to the overall
efficiency of this carbon sequestration.
RAW MATERIALS
Water
Water plays a central role in paper
production processes. It is used as a
transport medium to carry fibres through
the production process. Water is also
used for cooling machinery, for cleaning,
and as a carrier of energy in the form of
steam. As a water-intensive business,
we endeavour to consume and treat
water responsibly and efficiently.
Water is a critical resource, but for
our business its materiality is aligned
more to reputational risks from our
stewardship of water resources.
Group-wide, 51 per cent of our water
comes from boreholes, 6 per cent
is municipal, and 43 per cent is
surface water. 87 per cent of this
total volume is returned to the
river after appropriate treatment.
Our assessment of water-related risks
in our paper mills and their supply chains
indicates that the majority of our sites
are located in regions where freshwater
is a relatively abundant resource. We have
examined the water bodies that our most
significant water users discharge into,
and have found that the effect of their
operations is comparatively small. Many
of the water sources are of special

ecological status, and our comprehensive
and responsible treatment of our effluent
ensures that we do not adversely impact
these ecosystems.
We use wastewater treatment systems
to ensure that the effluent we discharge
is purified, ecologically safe, and meets
all regulatory requirements. We also
recycle water within our facilities
where this is feasible, reducing the
demand for freshwater intake. A direct
benefit of these efforts to reduce water
usage is the improvement in energy and
material efficiency.
Forests
The complex nature of recycling and
reprocessing distribution networks
means that it is not possible to verify
the provenance of each fibre used in
our products right back to the forest.
However, we believe that most of the
fibres in our products originate from
European commercial forestry operations.
Waste reduction
DSSmith Launceston carried out
a corrugator trim project to reduce
waste materials. The result was
that trim waste was reduced from
2.7 per cent of material on to 2.3 per
cent. This resulted in Launceston
preventing 130 tonnes of paper
waste per year.
Corrugator trim waste
2.73%
2.63%
2.40% 2.33%
17.1
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
We strongly believe that supporting

responsible and sustainable forestry
is a matter of strategic importance for
our industry and, although we dont
own any commercial forestry operations
ourselves, we support initiatives that
promote forest certification and chainof-custody certification schemes and
we ensure that any virgin fibres in our
products originate from sustainably
managed forests and tree plantations.
We support the FSC standard, the
PEFC standard and all other credible
international certification schemes.
Chemicals
Starch is a carbohydrate that is the
main form of stored energy in plants.
Pure starch is a white, tasteless and
odourless powder. The biggest industrial
non-food use of starch is as adhesive in
the paper and board making process.
The starches we use are refined from
the following commodities:
Types of papers used

in packaging operations
Wheat starch has been proven to be

suitable for corrugating, although it is
less commonly used owing to its
brittle bonding at low speeds.
Maize is the most widely grown

cereal in the world and maize starch
has become the reference for the
corrugating industry. It can be used
over a wide corrugating speed range.
Potato starch allows the production

speeds of heavyweight board grades
to be significantly increased.
Kraftliners
Mixed papers
Recycled papers
21.10%
2.50%
76.40%
Pea starch is the newest entrant to

the market. As a speciality starch it
has proved to be better than potato
starch for heavyweight boards and is
also used in the production of micro
and nano-flute (micro) grades.
Environment
RECYCLING AND WASTE

Recovered papers
Our ability to deliver a zero-waste
solution to major retailers is a significant
competitive advantage. Our closed loop
recycling model is at the core of this
strategy. All of our mills currently use
100 per cent recovered papers as their
primary raw material. This is usually
a mixture of old corrugated cases,
recycled newspapers and magazines.
We do not consider this to be waste;
we recognise it as a valuable resource
which we collect, sort, pulp and convert
through an extremely efficient network.
High paper recovery rates and the quality
of recovered paper streams are of great
strategic interest to us. Our recycling
business manages over 10,000 supply
contracts with national retailers, local
authorities and communities, and we
promote the most appropriate recycling
and recovery system for all our
customers. This makes good economic
Environment
25
sense due to the value of the materials,

which more than covers the cost of their
collection. Every tonne of recycled fibre
offsets the need to harvest a tonne of
virgin raw material. Recycled fibres are
turned into new packaging within 14 days.
As part of our recovered fibre sourcing
strategy, we are committed to working
with producers to ensure material is,
where possible, collected in separate
streams. This ensures minimum or no
contamination, and provides for a high
quality recycling stream that positively
impacts on the quality of the end
product, as well as reducing waste in
the recycling process itself.
Waste from routine operations
Our internal production processes
also generate waste streams, the vast
majority of which are reused through
our closed loop model. We are constantly
looking for new and innovative ways to
reuse materials that would otherwise
end up as waste. All of our plants actively

segregate waste to ensure that what
can be recycled is recycled. We use Six
Sigma and Lean tools to drive out all
forms of waste from our manufacturing
processes. The elimination of waste to
landfill, from our own operations as well
as those of our customers, has long been
a Group objective.
Preventing food waste
With food waste identified as a
critical issue, our role in designing
and manufacturing appropriate food
packaging contributes to the challenges
of food security, protection from
damage, preservation of freshness,
prolonged shelf life, added convenience
and reduced waste. Our recycling
operations also have to deal with food
waste that has reached the end of its
shelf life. We have developed a core
competency of working with food waste
and end of shelf life produce to reduce,
reuse and recycle potential food waste.
Increasing recycling rates for retailers

A pioneering waste management
project put in place by DSSmith has
seen innovative processes improve
the transport of food waste from
major retailers to more sustainable
recovery methods.
Our recycling division offers a full
recycling and waste management
service for major retailers, which
includes operating a successful
backhaul model, where retail stores
can return materials such as cardboard
and polythene for recycling to central
hubs on returning delivery vehicles.
Using this model enables retailers to
get the best value for their recyclables
as well as reducing the carbon emissions
of store recycling collections.
However, advances in this process
needed to be found to incorporate food
waste into the backhaul model, sending
it on to sustainable recovery processes.
The challenge our business faced was
to find a way to successfully and safely
transport food waste (including animal

by-products) to be sent to an Anaerobic
Digestion plant to be converted
into biogas.
To successfully co-ordinate this project
a robust and safe transportation process
needed to be put in place to transfer
this material to its end destination.
The solution we provided used the same
four-sided cages that deliver products
into stores, but with an added protective
plastic lining so that the food waste
could be safely transported. Once
inside our specially adapted vehicles the
cages are protected within a leak proof
container ready to go on their journey.
This new innovative concept for
transporting food waste has not been
used previously on this scale and
has played a big role in enabling us to
divert vast amounts of food waste from
landfill and improve the environmental
performance of our large retail clients.
26 Environment
Environment continued
Continuous Excellence
Continuous Excellence is a Group-wide
programme aimed at continuously
improving our performance in reducing
internal waste from our production
processes. Working across all divisions,
the programme is based on realising
the potential of our people by sharing
knowledge and competencies, finding
more efficient and collaborative ways
of working and eliminating waste.
It is results driven. Results are measured

in terms of cost reduction, revenue
increase and sustainable growth.
The vision is to foster a culture that
embraces continuous improvement
and operational excellence. Every single
DSSmith employee is encouraged to
initiate projects, and then to implement
them at local sites with their colleagues.
This follows the philosophy of OWN IT!
and fosters ownership of and
commitment to the projects and their

results. Employees are invited to
brainstorming sessions to generate
ideas for Continuous Excellence projects.
Ideas are selected based on their impact
potential, timescale and cost. Each
project is then implemented according to
Lean methodology, based on measurable
improvement results and KPIs.
Kemsley Mill zero waste project

An innovative project set up at
DSSmiths Kemsley Paper Mill has
enabled the recovery of previously
unrecyclable materials from the
paper making process.
Our Kemsley Paper Mill has a production
capacity of 800,000 tonnes per year
and is the second biggest recovered
fibre based paper operation in Europe.
To improve our recycling and waste
management methods a Reject
Processing Centre was established
at the mill in July 2014, with help from
our partners Countrystyle Recycling
Ltd and their sister company FGS Agri.
Applying the zero waste mantra the
centre processes the specific waste
streams that arise from the paper
making process, and organises
materials to be reused, recycled,
and used to provide steam for the
paper making process. As a result
no materials are sent to landfill.
The wastes generated in the mill

and subsequently used in the Reject
Processing Centre were Ragger
(a by-product containing baling wire,
plastics and fibre), and Light Rejects
(by-products of the various screening
processes, comprising metals,
plastic and fibre).
Using technology originally used to strip
tyres in France it became possible to
separate these waste streams, allowing
us to give them a second lease of life.
This successful project has displayed
our commitment to zero waste and
landfill avoidance. It also shows how
we strive to ensure materials are used
and reused as efficiently as possible,
and can find ways to make use of
materials that were previously
cast-off and deemed unusable.
Stefano Rossi
Divisional CEO and
Continuous Excellence Sponsor
Excellence is about surpassing

the ordinary standards. Its
about seeking a higher level of
performance through continuous
improvement of behaviour,
services, processes and products.
Well embedded into the OWN IT!
culture of our company,
Continuous Excellence is aiming
to inspire, sustain and strengthen
our competitive position. It is a
relentless process of continuously
challenging ourselves by
identifying opportunities,
setting the right priorities and
assigning them to the appropriate
people to ensure success.
Environment
BIODIVERSITY
Partnership with the Zoological
Society London
Global agreements such as the
Convention on Biological Diversity
(CBD) have set stringent goals for
biodiversity conservation. ZSLs
Indicators and Assessments Unit
(IAU) was formed in 2006 to develop
scientifically robust indicators to track
progress towards these goals and to
effectively determine the status and
trends of biodiversity globally.
With the support of the DSSmith
Charitable Foundation, the IAU is
undertaking a critical research project
to investigate the impacts of global
forest loss on biodiversity. As habitat
loss and habitat degradation continue
to be the principal threats to global
biodiversity, understanding how and
why particular species and populations
are most at risk is vital. The recent
development of global datasets
monitoring the changing state of
the earths forests offers new
Environment
27
opportunities to investigate how

such changes may impact wildlife
and ecosystems. The IAU collates and
analyses a number of global datasets,
including estimates of abundance
for over 15,000 wildlife populations,
covering over 3,000 species. Bringing
these data together offers a unique
opportunity to understand the impact
of the loss of these habitats on species
in the wild.
Dr Robin Freeman, Head of the IAU,
said Understanding how threats such
as forest loss affect wildlife populations
is crucial. As many species continue to

face the growing pressures of habitat
loss and exploitation, identifying
those species and areas that are
most at risk is now fundamental.
Determining why particular species
may be more or less effective will be
important for informing conservation
action. It is essential that we develop
our understanding of the impact we
may be having on the natural world.
New technologies such as remote
sensing offer new opportunities
and new ways to monitor our
natural world.
This map shows the global pattern of tree cover gains and losses. This has significant impacts both on biodiversity and on the
sustainability of our primary raw material supply, and illustrates the fine balance of sustainability.
Tree cover loss

Monitored wildlife population
Global tree cover loss (Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA)

28
We are committed to
conducting our business
in a responsible and
sustainable manner.
All of our activities are directed towards delighting
our customers, creating value for our shareholders
and providing our employees with a safe and
productive place to work.
4.16
146
Lost Time Accidents

in 2014/15
Accident Frequency Rate

in 2014/15
29
EMPLOYEES
Context
We are committed to ensuring our
employees work in a safe, fair and
productive environment. We base our
approach to, and expectation of, our
employees around our five DSSmith
values, which describe a bilateral
relationship between the company
and our employees. Our people are
the custodians of our reputation: they
represent our capacity to deliver on
our promise to be the most sustainable,
innovative and commercially successful
packaging strategists in each of our
markets. All of our executive and regional
leadership teams are committed to
maintaining high levels of visibility,
personally visiting as many plants
as possible and holding face to face
meetings to build on the dialogue
with our employees and to foster
trust and continued engagement.
Health and safety
We recognise that our people, contractors
and visitors are exposed to environments
that can potentially present real hazards.
Every employee is mandated to do their
utmost to reduce those hazards. Our
target is zero accidents and we have
established key performance indicators
to ensure that we continue to make
progress towards that goal. Our
businesses safety performance is
reported and reviewed on a monthly
basis. We monitor progress through
proactive audit programmes and other
initiatives such as observational safety
schemes and near miss reporting.
The outcomes of incident investigations
are shared within the organisation for
the implementation of steps to avoid
future accidents. Where applicable,
we also liaise with machine and
equipment suppliers, and trade
associations to ensure that safety
critical communications are shared widely.
Diversity and Inclusion
Diversity is important for us since we
believe it to be a key factor behind high
performing and innovative teams. We do
not tolerate any discrimination based on
culture, nationality, race, religion, gender,
gender identity, disability, sexual

orientation or age. Our approach
to diversity and inclusion is all about
recognising that the ideal working
environment is one which allows all
our employees to perform at their
best and develop to their full potential.
We value all kinds of diversity as well
as individual characteristics such as a
broad life experience.
During 2014 we have begun to collect
more comprehensive data on the diversity
of our workforce. We already knew that
only 20 per cent of our workforce,
and 9 per cent of our senior managers,
are women, but understanding the
broader societal factors, such as intergenerational changes in perception of
the manufacturing sector, will take
more time. Our intention is to share
more detailed data on the diversity
of our workforce on our website as
that research comes to fruition.
Reward, recognition and
share ownership
Our Total Reward approach is designed
and structured so as to ensure we attract,
retain, develop and motivate the best
people, building and ensuring a high
performing culture. Due to the diversity
of the markets in which we operate,
our Total Rewards are not standard
throughout the Group.
There are variances across markets

and countries to ensure that we are
competitive and compliant in those
markets. We want all our employees to
understand the Total Rewards of working
with DSSmith and we aim to communicate
these benefits clearly and transparently.
Key and common elements are:
Fixed pay
Variable pay
Learning and Development
A range of other benefits
DSSmith has a Group-wide employee
Sharesave arrangement, which is offered
as part of our overall reward strategy
and is available to all eligible employees.
It provides an opportunity for our
employees to share in the success
of DSSmith. This is a savings-related
arrangement whereby employees can
buy shares in the company at a fixed
price. The arrangement unites our
employees around a common purpose
and engages them in the strategic
direction of the Group. The focus on the
Groups performance reinforces the sense
of ownership and accountability for our
delivery at all levels of the business and
drives the DSSmith values, creating an
environment in which our people are
proud to give their best.
30
Social Responsibility continued
Employee communication
Communication is a primary responsibility
for all managers. Employees are
encouraged to participate and give
their views on any aspect of the Groups
performance. In October 2014 we ran
our third Group-wide employee survey,
asking our colleagues to share their views
on their role, their workplace and their
managers. With a response rate of 81
per cent there was strong participation
in the process. The main areas identified
for improvement were:
Performance management: the
completion of quality performance
appraisals, at least once a year, for
all employees is mandatory and
should be supplemented by regular
informal feedback (both positive
and constructive challenge) from
line managers.
Communication: building on our
existing employee engagement
activities under the banner of OWN IT!,
we seek to continue the development
of skills, channels and culture to allow
the open exchange of ideas and
information between individuals
and teams.
Recognition: we are working on
solutions to improve the identification,
encouragement and reinforcement
of exemplary behaviours and high
performance throughout the business.
European Works Council
The European Works Council (EWC) is
an employee consultation body working
in partnership with DSSmith with the
objective of developing a fair, safe and
positive working environment and culture
for all. It represents employees across
Europe and understands the diversity
of beliefs, cultures and affiliations within
the Group. Its purpose is to bring together
representatives from all European
countries, meeting twice per year in
January and July. Representatives are
elected or appointed to attend the EWC
in accordance with local law and practice
in each country.
Human rights
Our commitment to respect and support
human rights extends to our suppliers,
business partners, and the wider
communities within our sphere of
influence. Our human rights approach
is aligned with universally accepted
international and regional human rights
instruments and we subscribe to the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
We have embedded these elements
in our Code of Conduct, which has an
enhanced focus on human and labour
rights. These issues have also been
integrated into our social responsibility
guidelines, supplier sustainability
requirements and due diligence
guidelines for new investments. These
frameworks shape our approach to
human and labour rights and serve as
guiding standards when we work in
regions where related local regulations
are assessed as weak or non-existent.
Forced and child labour
During the reporting period, there were
no reported instances of forced labour
or child labour, either in our own
operations, or in those of our suppliers.
We will only ever employ people who
are working of their own free will. No
employee is required to lodge a deposit,
and no individual will be deprived of
identity papers upon commencing
employment with the Group. Every
line manager is responsible for making
sure that these absolute standards
are adhered to.
THE DSSMITH
CHARITABLE FOUNDATION
At DSSmith we seek to make a positive
contribution to the communities in which
we operate and to build on our reputation
as a good neighbour and employer.
Developing and maintaining good
relations in the local communities in
which we operate is important to us.
The DSSmith Charitable Foundation
was established to provide funding to
charities with activities and values similar
to those of DSSmith. In particular, we
support charities engaged in improving
or conserving the environment, and
those providing training and educational
opportunities. During the last year,
the Foundation has helped to support
a number of organisations providing
work placements for disadvantaged
young people.
The DSSmith Charitable Foundation is a
registered charity, which aims to make a
combination of small donations (1,000
or less) as well as a number of larger
donations each year, and the trustees are
particularly interested in opportunities to
develop multi-year partnerships with key
selected charities. Details of some of the
charities that the DSSmith Charitable
Foundation has helped during the last
year are available on our website.
Requests for donations can be made
via the website at:
www.dssmith.com/company/
sustainability/social-responsibility/
charitable-trust/charitable-form/
EMPLOYEE FUNDRAISING
In addition to our Charitable Foundation,
we also encourage and support employee
fundraising initiatives at a local and
national level. During 2014, these have
encompassed a wide range of activities,
from individuals achieving personal
challenges and milestones to teams
of DSSmith employees cooperating
to support causes that matter to
them and their families. We are proud
of all their achievements and their
visible commitment to living the
DSSmith values.
31
DSSmith Charitable Foundation Grants
DANMARKS INDSAMLING
Annual campaign to raise funds
for worthy causes worldwide
(Photo credit: Preben Hjorth)
FRESHER FOR LONGER

SCHOOLS PROGRAMME
Reducing food waste through
awareness in schools
ARKWRIGHT
SCHOLARSHIP TRUST
Engineering scholarships for
school children
CHANGING TUNES
Using music and singing to help
rehabilitate former prisoners
UNICEF
Replacing traditional corporate
Christmas gifts with a donation
to support the work of UNICEF
Find out more about Social

Responsibility online
www.dssmith.com/
company/sustainability/
social-responsibility/
Employee Fundraising
MACMILLAN CANCER SUPPORT
HEART RESEARCH UK AND CANCER RESEARCH UK
Each year, many of our talented colleagues showcase their

baking skills to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
A 900-mile epic ride from Livingston to Launceston raised

over 102,000 for Heart Research and Cancer Research UK.
32
Social Responsibility continued
Keep Britain Tidy

During the year DSSmith has become
the primary sponsor of Keep Britain
Tidys Green Flag Award scheme.
DSSmith has pledged to volunteer and
fundraise, supporting the development
of green spaces and the Green Flag
Award for communities and businesses
in the UK across all its sites.
Keep Britain Tidy chief executive
Richard McIlwain said: We are
continually trying to improve parks and
green spaces and maintain the profile
and reach of the Green Flag Award.
Participating DSSmith employees will
find it incredibly rewarding to be part of
such worthwhile community projects.
We are extremely happy to be working

with Keep Britain Tidy on this project,
as this demonstrates how the business
sector and community organisations
can work together to address the
issues that matter most to our
communities. Through this initiative,
we intend to make a real difference
to the quality of life of our employees
in the workplace, and to the local
communities near to DSSmith sites.
Greenspace projects are already
underway across the Group and
have been met with enthusiasm
by employees. We look forward to
sharing our green stories with you.
During the first year this work has been

focused in England, with an ambitious
plan to roll out the scheme into
additional territories, and in each case
with projects aligned to a local green
space that is used by employees and
communities in which DSSmith
has a local factory. The partnership
will see the two organisations working
together to improve the environment
we live in, which in turn will improve our
local communities quality of life. For
more information on the Partnership
contact Sophie Gibbs, Corporate
Engagement Manager, at:
[email protected]
About this Review
About this Review
33
Scope of the Review
Our performance is assessed

using the Global Reporting
Initiatives GRI G4 framework.
This review provides a
comprehensive description
of the governance of
sustainability issues within
DSSmith, and how our
progress towards our targets
and the performance of our
strategy are evaluated for
each of our environmental,
social and economic objectives.
It is our policy that specified key

performance indicators (KPIs) that
relate to our published targets should
be externally assured, and this is clearly
annotated for the datasets covered.
The data collection strategy that
underpins our wider sustainability
reporting, and in particular the information
we publish via our website, uses the
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G4
framework, although we have insufficient
verified data available at present across
a sufficient number of material aspects
and indicators to enable comprehensive
disclosure. This remains an objective we
are actively working towards.
Unless otherwise specified, statistical

information referred to in this document
covers the calendar year, from 1 January
to 31 December 2014. Some data is based
on our financial year, which runs from
1 May 2014 to 30 April 2015. Our
consolidated environmental performance
data covers all production facilities that
were owned and operated for the entire
period, unless otherwise stated. Sales
offices and other central staff locations
are excluded from the environmental
performance data.
Data about our people was derived
from separately collected HR sources,
and the number of our employees is
derived from payroll data. This covers
permanent and temporary employees
as at 31 December 2014.
34
About this Review
Assurance Statement
ENVIRONMENTAL INCIDENTS
Assurance Statement
Bureau Veritas UK has been
commissioned by DSSmith Plc
(DSSmith) for the seventh year
to provide an independent opinion
on the Environmental Performance
Indicators presented in this Report.
Having completed a process of
assessment including site visits,
document review and interrogation
of associated management and
reporting systems, Bureau Veritas
concludes that there is no evidence
to suggest that the data presented
here is not a fair and accurate
representation of DSSmiths
performance. DSSmith should be
commended on its approach to
consistent data collection and the
work which has been undertaken
this year to ensure that there is a
good understanding of associated
processes across the company both
at a Group and a site level. It remains
clear that DSSmith is constantly
looking to improve its internal
processes and has proactively
engaged in the verification process.
A full verification statement
including the methodology,
basis for the opinion, additional
recommendations, limitations
and a statement of Bureau
Veritass independence can
be found on the DSSmith Plc
website at: www.dssmith.com/
sustainability/environment/
performance
With the exception of one effluent

spillage at our Clay Cross site on
3 February 2015, which resulted in a
warning letter from the United Kingdom
Environment Agency on 30 March 2015,
no other major environmental incidents
or incidents of significant impact
reportable to local or national authorities,
or incidents potentially resulting in legal
prosecution, have been reported for the
period covered by this Review.
DISCLOSURE ON MANAGEMENT
APPROACH
The management approach to
sustainability is based on those aspects
of the GRI G4 framework that have been
identified as material to our business.
We measure, analyse and report on
additional data for each of these
aspects, where we consider this to be
consistent with the legitimate demands
of our stakeholders and appropriate
from a commercial and legislative
perspective. Unless otherwise stated,
the Groups consolidated data published
in this Review or on our website covers
DSSmith Plc (the parent company), and
all subsidiary entities in which we hold
over 50 per cent of voting rights directly
or indirectly. Consolidated sustainability
performance data does not cover
investments where ownership is below
50 per cent. These are undertakings in
which DSSmith has influence, but which
we do not control. DSSmith Plc complies
with the corporate and accounting
regulations of the UK, and all subsidiary
companies comply with the regulations,
legislation and permitting requirements
of all countries and regions in which
they operate.
QUESTIONS AND FEEDBACK

Any questions about this document
should be directed to the Group Health,
Safety and Environment Director via the
Group website:
About this Review
About this Review
35
Data tables
ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Group Greenhouse Gas Emissions
(Data for period 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2014)
Scope 1: Combustion of fuel and operation of facilities
Scope 2: Electricity, heat, steam and cooling purchased
for own use
CO2e impact of electricity, heat, and steam exported
to third parties
Total
Other environmental indicators

Total production
Electricity, heat, and steam exported to third parties
Total effluent water discharged
Total waste to landfill
Our environmental targets

Emissions per tonne of production (CO2e net of energy exports)
Total effluent water discharged per tonne of production
Total waste to landfill per tonne of production
Unit of measure
2014
2013
2012
Change
ktonnes of CO2e
1,281
1,215
n/a
5.4%
ktonnes of CO2e
526
576
n/a
(8.6%)
ktonnes of CO2e
(584)
1,223
(519)
1,272
n/a
n/a
12.4%
(3.8%)
Change
Unit of measure
2014
2013
2012
ktonnes
GWh
Mm3
ktonnes
5,916
2,183
17.0
63
6,027
1,995
16.6
64
5,322
n/a
16.0
68
(1.8%)
9.4%
2.4%
(2.1%)
Unit of measure
2014
2013
2012
Change
kg CO2e/tonne
m3/tonne
kg/tonne
206.8
2.9
10.5
211.0
2.8
10.6
n/a
3.0
12.8
(2.0%)
4.3%
(0.3%)
Methodology
1 DSSmith collects and reports environmental data in accordance with the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative and the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP),
to the extent that this is practicable.
2 The figures reported above include data from all the Groups wholly-owned or majority-owned manufacturing operations. Of the 89 sites whose production
process requires fossil fuels (paper mills, corrugating plants and foam plants), actual consumption figures were available for all sites. The total figures also
include emissions data from a further 81 smaller production facilities that use only grid electricity.
3 The combined heat and power plant that supplies Witzenhausen with steam is fired predominantly by biogenic fuels. The emission factor for this site
has been estimated as 92.019 kg/MWh of CO2e.
4 Greenhouse gas emissions were calculated using the UK Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs 2014 emissions factors. The factors used
for converting grid electricity reflect the mix of fuels used for electricity generation in each country.
5 Scope 3 emissions, from sources external to DSSmith but involved in the supply chains for the Groups products and services, are not included.
6 The waste figures relate to waste generated by our operations; they do not include waste collected from third parties as a raw material by our
recycling operations.
7 Production is defined as the sum of the production output in tonnes from each site whose energy, waste and water consumption is reported above.
36
About this Review
Data tables continued
GROUP GREENHOUSE GAS

EMISSIONS BY SCOPE
GROUP GREENHOUSE GAS

EMISSIONS BY GREENHOUSE GAS
Global
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Hungary
Israel
Italy
Lithuania
Netherlands
New Zealand
Poland
Romania
Slovakia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Thailand
United Kingdom
United States
Total CO2e
emissions
(tonnes)
Scope 1
(tonnes)
Scope 2
(tonnes)
Total CO2
emissions
(tonnes)
Total CH4
emissions
(tonnes)
Total N2O
emissions
(tonnes)
Total HFCs
emissions
(tCO2e)
Total C5H12
emissions
(tCO2e)
1,824,326
3,075
9,404
893
314
7,569
12,902
3,128
4,840
157,753
347,324
4,830
1,404
302,631
3,262
261,159
223
41,910
2,463
2,618
2,974
2,710
1,798
122
642,771
6,252
1,292,529
2,354
6,073
59
15
2,965
7,340
1,087
2,383
138,425
224,568
2,492
0
126,039
1,978
246,430
8
18,417
1,365
92
434
2,115
1,682
0
506,037
171
531,798
721
3,331
834
299
4,605
5,562
2,041
2,457
19,328
122,755
2,338
1,404
176,591
1,284
14,729
215
23,493
1,098
2,525
2,540
594
116
122
136,734
6,082
1,865,171
3,069
9,388
893
314
7,562
12,877
3,124
4,828
157,414
390,805
4,824
1,404
302,138
3,258
260,574
223
41,637
2,460
2,617
2,973
4,192
1,794
122
640,430
6,252
2,508
4
9
0
0
5
11
1
5
231
517
4
0
350
3
419
0
15
2
0
1
4
3
0
924
0
2,181
3
7
0
0
3
15
3
6
108
206
2
0
143
1
166
0
258
1
0
0
4
2
0
1,255
0
159
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
159
0
199
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
199
0
Our challenge to you:

7 things you can do to make
the world a greener place
1
Recycle as much metal, plastic and cardboard as you can.
Travel with consideration.
Inform yourself about local recycling regulations so you can optimise your recycling and
reduce your waste.
Millions of litres of fuel are wasted every year due to incorrectly inflated tyres.
Preventative maintenance is an important driver of efficiency.
Be economical with electricity.

Unplug electrical appliances when they are not being used. Sockets use energy when
plugs are plugged in, regardless of whether the appliance is active or not (i.e. a phone charger).
Check the taps.

A tap leaking one drop per second can equate to 1,300 gallons per year. This amount of water
could fill 26 baths! Make sure your plumbing is in working order to prevent any unnecessary waste.
Save a tree.
Trees are crucial to the survival of the planet. The greatest cause of deforestation is conversion
to agricultural land use, resulting in losses of 3 to 6 billion trees per year. By recycling old
corrugated boxes and packaging, and by insisting on recycled packaging when you shop,
you are preventing deforestation.
Change your bulbs.

Use LED lighting or Contact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs) to light your home instead of standard
light bulbs. In comparison to regular bulbs, they last 10 times longer, produce 90% less heat
and use of the energy, yet still produce more light per watt!
Dont throw it all away.

Not all waste should be thrown in the bin. Electrical technology such as old mobile phones and
broken computers contain mercury as well as other chemicals which are toxic and increasingly
becoming a problem in the environment. Ask your local council where your nearest electronic
recycling point is.

DS Smith Plc
350 Euston Road
Regents Place
London
NW1 3AX
Telephone +44 (0)20 7756 1800
Find us on:
Printed in the UK by Principal Colour Ltd on

Lumi Silk made from FSC certified fibre
Principal Colour Ltd are certified to the
ISO 14001 Environmental Management System.
Designed and produced by Black Sun Plc (London)

www.blacksunplc.com
+44 (0) 20 7736 0011

Sustainability Report of DS Smith

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Sustainability Report of DS Smith

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Sustainability Report of DS Smith

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

SUSTAINABILITY REVIEW 2015

About this Review

Our Business Overview

Letter from the Chief Executive

8 Supply Cycle Thinking

Materiality and risk

Ethics and compliance

Explore our website at www.dssmith.com

Sustainability Review 2015

Welcome to our Sustainability Review

OUR PRIORITY ISSUES

Recycling and waste

As our business continues to grow and

Each and every day, the activities of

We want to share with all our

Our Business Overview

We create value by bringing

OUR BUSINESS MODEL

Our vision is to become the

We bring insight and innovation to

Balance of our combined

Sustainability Review 2015

HOW WE CREATE VALUE

HOW WE CREATE VALUE

HOW WE CREATE VALUE

We produce the paper required by our

Flexible packaging and dispensing

HOW WE CREATE VALUE

Letter from the Chief Executive

Our emphasis on closed loop

sustainability reporting with the goals

provide and by paying taxes when due;

OUR STRATEGIC GOALS

See our Annual Report 2015 for more information

Sustainability Review 2015

We can always be trusted to deliver on our promises.

We get things done.

To double the size

Building a common culture

Ensuring the safety of all

How we have delivered:

Building a resilient and

How we have delivered:

15 per cent reduction

182 sites with zero

81 per cent response rate

How we have delivered:

Expanding our footprint

Sustainability Review 2015

Portion control can help tackle

far more resources than they use

Supply Cycle Thinking

At DSSmith, were driven

Sustainability Review 2015

THE SUPPLY CYCLE

View our Supply Cycle Thinking

We listen to our stakeholders

all employees are obliged to follow in

Number of locations with a Community Engagement programme

Sustainability Review 2015

8 Supply Cycle Thinking

Recycling and waste

Our emphasis on closed loop

See our Annual Report 2015 for more information

We stimulate our key suppliers

The best way to achieve lasting