JAPAN (News release) -- Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd. (President: Toru Nozawa, "Nippon Paper Industries") obtained two Eco Rail Mark certifications on August 20, 2021.　One of the certifications is in the "Companies" category, and applies to Nippon Paper Industries itself as a company, while the other is in the "Products" category, and applies to the company's paper products (newsprint, printing and writing paper, business communication paper, industrial paper, etc.)

Eco Rail Mark is a certification scheme established by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT). It applies to companies (and the products of companies) which make use of rail freight transportation, which generates lower unit CO2 emissions. Nippon Paper Industries has long been engaged in a modal shift that switches the long-distance and mass transportation mode from trucks to railways and domestic ships. In the paper business, Nippon Paper Industries achieved a modal shift rate*1 of 85% in fiscal 2020, and maintains a high level of shipments utilizing rail for on-land transportation, at over 55%*2. These Eco Rail Mark certifications are considered as being in recognition of these efforts.

In its 2030 Vision (formulated in May 2021), Nippon Paper Industries emphasized contributing to the achievement of the SDGs through sustainable management in pursuit of social and environmental sustainability as well as corporate growth, with "Responding to the rapidly changing social landscape including CO2 emissions reduction and environmental issues" as one of its basic policies. Going forward, Nippon Paper Industries will continue working to build a logistics network with lower environmental impact.

*1 Rail or marine (including coastal shipping and ferries) transport as a percentage of general cargo transported over 500 kilometers.
*2 Percentage of cargo quantity transported on land over distances of at least 500km by rail