The Board of the Paper Workers’ Union has confirmed the negotiated results of the collective labour agreements for the Finnish mills and biorefinery of UPM Pulp, UPM Communication Papers, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Raflatac and UPM Biofuels. An agreement was reached earlier today in the last open negotiations at UPM Specialty Papers. The new collective labour agreements will have a two-year contract period and will enter into force immediately. The agreed wage increases in the collective agreements will take effect from 1 July 2024. "We are pleased that, after long and thorough negotiations, we have reached five agreements where we have jointly developed the content of the agreements to meet the needs of each business," says Riitta Savonlahti, Executive Vice President, HR at UPM.

Our Windsor Mill in Windsor, Quebec, has gone to great lengths to close its sustainability loop and nurture the forests that support its operations and the people that live and work in the surrounding area. That includes a partnership with local maple syrup producers. The Windsor Mill is one of Canada’s last fully integrated pulp and paper mills, and it owns 400,000 acres of forestland to support its operations. The mill manages its forests for multiple uses, selectively harvesting trees about once every 20 years. The mill has developed partnerships for the forests to benefit the larger community during the two decades of growing time. One of these partnerships was formed in 2016 to allow local maple syrup producers to harvest sap from the large stands of sugar maples that dominate the land. Since starting its partnership with local syrup makers, more than 260,000 taps have yielded enough tree sap for 47 maple syrup producers to create thousands of gallons of their signature product.

Neenah, a leading global manufacturer of latex-saturated and coated papers used in abrasive products worldwide, introduces DURAFLAT® Fibre Grinding Disc Backing, an alternative to traditional vulcanized fibre discs, to the marketplace. DURAFLAT Fibre offers better dimensional stability to reduce curl, improved efficiencies, lower costs, and flatter discs that enhance grinding execution and reduce bursting in packaging on the shelf. “Over the last 60 years, Neenah has designed over 180 paper-based abrasive backers for various end-use applications. In DURAFLAT Fibre, we wanted to create a competitive, high-performance alternative for the growing number of our customers looking to reduce dependency on vulcanized fibre discs,” says Valerie Henderson, Abrasive Backings Product Manager for Neenah. DURAFLAT Fibre effectively resists humidity and will not curl like traditional vulcanized fibre discs. As a result, abrasives manufacturers and end-users get a product that increases functionality and effectiveness. Neenah also differentiates by offering custom design support, a range of weights, and unlimited colors for a tailor-made brand experience.