Sonoco s Environmental Sustainability Portfolio A long history of reclamation and recycling

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1 Sonoco s Environmental Sustainability Portfolio A long history of reclamation and recycling Long before it became popular, Sonoco operated an aggressive paper recovery and recycling program. Today, after more than a century s work, Sonoco ranks among the largest recyclers in North America, collecting more than three million tons of paper annually worldwide as well as a significant amount of plastics and metals. In addition to reclaiming paper and other recyclables, many of Sonoco s products support the development of sustainable packaging by adhering to life cycle, source reduction and waste minimization principles. Many of the Company s paper-based products follow a cradle-to-cradle vision of packaging where products are collected and recycled to produce other useful products. Why is Sonoco committed to this effort? Simple. It s good for business ours and our customers. Reusing renewable resources, such as paper fiber, helps preserve limited natural resources and decreases our reliance on landfills. As for our customers, it relieves businesses and municipalities of the rising costs of waste management.

2 The following are some of the accomplishments occurring within. Paper Sonoco s sustainability efforts are best reflected in its stewardship approach to packaging. The Company supports recycling efforts with its customers around the world by taking back used products, such as tubes, cores and other paper-based packaging, and using the reclaimed products as raw materials for its papermaking operations. SAVE SAVE SAVE Save energy, land and natural resources recycle When you recycle your waste paper* at Sonoco s Rockton facility, you help conserve natural resources and reduce the waste stream. You re also helping conserve energy. Just bring your old newspapers, magazines and cardboard to our plant and we ll do the rest. It s easy, it s free and you are helping protect the environment. *Sonoco accepts newspapers, magazines, brown boxes, tubes, envelopes and paper bags for recycling. Sonoco does not accept wax- or poly-coated paper (drink cups or produce boxes), glass, plastic, steel, Styrofoam, hazardous materials, pet food bags or garbage for recycling. Curbside drop off Sonoco 200 Hawick Street Rockton, IL Sonoco uses two million tons of recycled paper annually Sonoco s Paper division produces approximately two million tons of paperboard annually, primarily from recycled old corrugated containers (OCC) that are collected by Sonoco s Recovered Paper operations worldwide. Success Story Local efforts spur loose paper recycling: Many of Sonoco s paper mills work with their local communities to gather loose paper for recycling directly in the mills. For example, in Rockton, Ill., Sonoco developed a direct mail campaign to inform area residents of its loose paper collection efforts which has spurred increased recovery in the community. Forest Products Since the 1950s, Sonoco has owned and managed timberlands in South Carolina to provide raw materials for the production of corrugated medium paperboard. Today, the Company owns or leases approximately 80,000 acres of woodlands in the state. Sonoco s forestry management professionals practice best conservation and forestry management practices including utilizing 100 percent of the wood coming from logged trees, which is then used in making pulp fiber to produce paperboard. Success Story: Conservation easement donated for Swamp Fox site: In the spring of 2000, Sonoco granted a conservation easement on 70 acres of woodlands on Snow s Island for archeologists

3 and historians to continue the search for Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion s hideout. Recovered Paper Sonoco s Recovered Paper division operates 43 Company-owned paper recovery processing facilities in nine countries in North America, South America, Europe and Asia. Sonoco also operates two Materials Recovery Facilities (MRFs) in Columbia, S.C., and Raleigh, N.C., where it reclaims residential and commercial recyclables including paper, aluminum, steel, plastics and glass. Materials processed at the facilities are then transported to domestic and international basic material manufacturers for producing recycled products. Sonoco is one of the largest recyclers in North America Sonoco annually recovers approximately three million tons of old corrugated containers (OCC) and other grades of recovered paper. The Company uses about half in its paperboard manufacturing operations and sells the remainder to other paper producers. In addition, the Company reclaims other materials ranging from metals to plastics for recycling. Success Story Sonoco opens new residential recycling facility in North Carolina: In September 2006, Sonoco opened a new $5 million fully automated Materials Recovery Facility in Raleigh. The facility has the capacity to process 500 million pounds of recyclables annually. Success Story Sonoco helping Wal-Mart s sustainability strategy: Annually Sonoco s recovers more than 200,000 tons of old corrugated containers from Wal-Mart stores for recycling. Sonoco provides free bailing equipment on-site at selected Wal-Mart locations as well as a number of other large retailers to recover boxes and other paper-based packaging. Success Story Local recycling efforts boost school fund-raising efforts: In Augusta, Ga., local schools gather loose paper from the community which they sell to Sonoco s local Recovered Paper operation. The recycling activity not only reduces landfill wastes for the community, but raises funds for the schools band activities.

4 Sonoco pilots sustainability audits of manufacturing plants Sonoco has initiated an R3 (Reduce, Reclaim, Recycle) pilot initiative with its existing customers to perform sustainability audits of their manufacturing facilities designed to improve productivity by reducing plant wastes going to landfills while offering a new revenue stream from recycled materials. Success Story R3 plant audits identify significant savings: Sonoco s R3 pilot project has performed audits on 12 Company manufacturing facilities and several customer plants in In each case, hundred of thousands of dollars in saving were identified by reducing wastes being taken to landfills and recovering certain recyclable materials. Sonoco has placed compacting balers at customer plant locations to capture materials for recycling. Consumer Packaging Rigid Paper Sonoco is the world s leading manufacturer of highperformance recycled paperboard composite cans Sonoco s composite cans utilize source reduction and recycled content strategies while providing a unique, light-weight, durable and cost-effective consumer package. This rigid canister is comprised of a recycled paperboard body that comes in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, with consumer-friendly opening and closing features; barrier options; and high-impact graphics. Sonoco s composite cans provide packaging solutions for powdered beverages, frozen concentrates, snack foods, cereals, coffee, cookies, cleaners, sealants and other food and non-food consumer products. Success Story Sonoco composite cans feature high recycled content: Sonoco s composite cans are made primarily from 100% recycled Duroboard paperboard with a minimum of 90% postconsumer recycled content. Paper-bottomed composite cans have an average of 75% recycled content, with 60% to 70% being postconsumer material. Metal closures used in some containers also contain recycled materials of which at least 10% is post-consumer material. On average, Sonoco composite cans contain 50% recycled content, 35% of which is postconsumer recycled materials. The recycled use contents of Sonoco s composite cans are among the highest acceptable use values for any food package confirmed by the Food and Drug Administration. Illustration courtesy of city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada Success Story Toronto s Blue Box program recycling composite cans: On Oct. 31, 2006, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, became one of the first major cities in Canada to begin accepting nearly all of the components of composite cans in

5 its curbside collection program. The city s Blue Box program is collecting the paperboard body, metal ends and plastic lids that are then recycled. Wire and Cable Reels Baker reels recycling program saves 500,000 trees Sonoco s Wire and Cable Reels business offers a unique reclamation and recycling program that gives its customers the option of using new or used reels. The program collects, refurbishes and resuses cable reels to better utilize natural resources as well as reducing waste and disposal costs. The Company operates 13 recycling centers throughout the United States which allows it to offer recycling in 641 communities nationwide and in Canada. Success Story: Reel recycling program saves customers more than $100 million: Since its inception, the Baker reel recycling program has recovered nearly 1.5 million reels which were refurbished and reused, saving our customers more than $27 million in the difference between purchasing a new and used reel. By recovering nearly 310 million pounds of reels, Sonoco has saved nearly 500,000 trees while avoiding approximately $60 million in landfill expenses for its customers. Tubes and Cores Sonoco s recycling and reclamation efforts are not limited to paper. For decades, the Company has been reclaiming used tubes and cores from its customers and its customers customers. Sonoco operates core reclamation centers in Atlanta, Ga., Chicago, Ill., Philadelphia, Pa., and Newark, N.J. Success Story Sonosystem newsprint core reclamation system saves pressroom operators time and money: As the world s leading producer of paper mill cores, Sonoco has created a no-cost reclamation system for newsprint cores called Sonosystem. Many of the largest pressrooms in the U.S. have saved thousands of dollars in landfill fees and handling labor by having Sonoco reclaim paper mill cores. Once reclaimed, the cores are used to make new paperboard.

6 DURA-Block Pallet Blocks Manufactured using 100% recycled treated wood, Sonoco s new DURA-Block composite pallet blocks provide two times the nail-pull withdrawal strength of standard wood blocks. Sonoco s pallet blocks help extend the life of pallets, reducing wood consumption needed to produce new pallets and blocks. Success Story Sonoco developing new pallet blocks made from recycled plastic packaging: To further meet customer needs, while reducing landfill wastes, Sonoco is piloting the development of composite material pallet blocks that will incorporate recycled plastics coming from manufacturing scrap and reclaimed packaging. Protective Packaging Sonoco protective packaging uses 75,000 tons of recycled paperboard annually Sonoco s Protective Packaging group is a leading provider of designed engineered packaging solutions for large household appliances (ranges, refrigerators, washers, dryers), heating and air conditioning, electronics, lawn and garden, furniture and office furnishings, kitchen and bath (cabinets, tubs, sinks), automotive, retail displays and pallet configurations for consumer products (food and nonfood). Based on our proprietary post-making process, every packaging solution is made from 100% recycled paperboard and possesses specific performance attributes that provide the highest level of protection. Annually, Sonoco s Protective Packaging group uses 75,000 tons of recycled paperboard in producing posts and bases for its customers all of which also may be recycled. Sonoco CorrFlex Sonoco CorrFlex s promotional and point-of-purchase (P-O-P) services help its retail-focused customers sell more products. In addition, many of the Company s P-O-P displays utilize corrugated paperboard and the Company s patented paperboard-based corner posts, both of which are manufactured with 100% recycled paper. Sonoco also works with its point-of-purchase customers to recover and recycle its used corrugated paper-based displays.

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