Charmin, Angel Soft and Quilted Northern among major brands receiving failing grades
WASHINGTON — A new report from the Natural Resources Defense Council is putting some of America’s most recognizable toilet paper brands under scrutiny for their use of forest fiber and other environmental impacts.
NRDC released the eighth edition of its “The Issue with Tissue” report Wednesday, grading more than 100 toilet paper, paper towel and facial tissue brands based on factors including recycled content, forest and bamboo fiber sourcing and bleaching practices.
Of the 62 toilet paper brands included in the scorecard, 29 received an F, according to NRDC.
Among the major brands receiving failing grades were Charmin, Angel Soft, Quilted Northern and Bounty.
NRDC said several brands available on the same store shelves received A or A+ grades, including Aria, Green Forest, Natural Value, Trader Joe’s and 365 by Whole Foods Market 100% Recycled.
The environmental group said those products are made with 100% recycled content and do not use chlorine bleaching.
“Choosing toilet paper is an often-overlooked climate decision,” said Ashley Jordan, global forest risk analyst at NRDC. She said consumers can choose products made from recycled content or responsibly sourced bamboo as alternatives to conventional forest-fiber products.
NRDC said much of the fiber used in lower-rated tissue products comes from forests, including Canada’s boreal forest.
The group cited Environmental Paper Network data indicating that forest-fiber toilet paper has nearly twice the climate impact of recycled-content toilet paper. For paper towels, NRDC said the difference is more than two and a half times.
NRDC also estimates that if every American replaced one roll of forest-fiber toilet paper with a recycled roll, the change could save more than 1 billion gallons of water and 1.6 million trees while avoiding nearly 800 million pounds of climate pollution.
According to NRDC’s analysis, switching to recycled-content toilet paper costs consumers about $5 more per year on average.
The report encourages consumers to pay attention to the materials used in tissue products and consider recycled or responsibly sourced alternatives when making purchases.
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