Why CEO's Don't Want to Hear About Nonwoods - or Should They?, 1998 North America Nonwood Fiber Symposium Proceedings
When we agreed to present this keynote paper at the 1998 North American Nonwood Fiber Symposium, we had decided to approach the topic from the perspective of what CEO’s want from nonwood plant fibers for pulp and paper production; the original title for our presentation was “What the Pulp and Paper Industry Wants from Nonwood Fibers”. During the course of preparing the paper, however, we found that although there is growing interest in nonwood fibers, the pulp and paper industry as a whole is reluctant to embrace the use of nonwood fibers for a variety of reasons. Given this realization, we decided to address some of the key concerns expressed by the industry in relation to the potential use of nonwood plant fibers by North American pulp and paper mills. CEO’s today are faced with very much the same problems as may have been faced by industry leaders two centuries ago, regarding long-term fiber supply. The consumption of paper during the 18” century had increased dramatically, with books in wider circulation, the establishment of newspapers, the publication of weekly and monthly magazines, and the introduction of paper as a packaging material, not to mention its use in the wrapping of lead balls and powder for muskets....