Widthwise 2022
What the data tells us: Environmental outlook
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here is an often-quoted Chinese cliché that every journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. It would seem, from the results of the 2022 Image Reports Widthwise survey, that Britain’s print service providers (PSPs) have only taken a few steps on the long and winding road to carbon neutrality. While the survey does suggest that sustainability is high on the industry agenda, there is not a great deal of evidence of the kind of imaginative, innovative thinking that will be required to reach Net Zero by 2050, a target recognised as critical if we are to avoid the catastrophic impacts of climate change. The wide-format sector’s three key priorities haven’t changed much over the past five years: more than three out of four PSPs (78.61%) are focused on reducing energy consumption and almost as many (77.61%) are looking to reduce and recycle in-house waste. The other most common goals are measuring and reducing carbon footprints (54.71%) and using recyclable materials (54.22%). Encouragingly - both for the industry and the planet - many printers also seem to have moved on from carbon offsetting and are prioritising the monitoring and reduction of emissions.
These are all sound fabulous green goals but, if this has to be the decade we tackle climate change as US president Joe Biden and other world leaders have argued, shouldn’t PSPs be doing more? It is clear that things are changing. A growing band of companies, such as MacroArt, are taking responsibility for taking back and recycling their printed waste from customers - but are they changing fast enough? Perhaps one problem is that many industry executives think that the battle has already been lost - only 27.14% believe that environmental catastrophe can be avoided, while 33.67% say it cannot. Four of ten respondents aren’t sure, an uncertainty shared by many business leaders, politicians and scientists. In the past, the wide-format sector has complained about the mismatch between what customers say about sustainability and what they actually do. That credibility gap, if you will, persists - 62.19% of PSPs say that few customers enquire about their environmental accreditations, and 5.47% say their clients never ask. Less than one in ten respondents report that most buyers mention the issue. This must be galling for the vast majority of print companies which, previous Widthwise surveys indicate, have acquired
some kind of environmental credentials There are many possible explanations for customers’ inconsistent attitude: lack of time (especially when Covid was at its peak), lack of interest, lack of budget (many fear that greener options will cost more), lack of experience (many veteran print buyers have been put out to pasture as companies cut costs) and lack of expertise. Even if a customer wants to do the right thing - and increasing number do - it is not always clear which print solution will be kindest to the environment. Indeed, estimating, managing and reducing carbon emissions becomes more complicated the more ambitious you become, but there are some aids to help educate, inform and influence the customer. Media suppliers such as Taya, Innotech and Antalis offer different kinds of ‘eco’ calculators, and printers can share their own policies and practices with clients especially if, for instance, they use take back and recycle schemes. Encouragingly, in the 2022 survey, more than nine out of ten (91.04%) printers say being seen to be environmentally friendly is more important than it was two years ago. That is a significant jump since 2021 when 70.77% said the same. There is plenty of anecdotal evidence from past Widthwise round table discussions
Q28. Do you think the world can avoid catastrophic climate change? Don’t know No Yes
39.20% 33.67% 27.14%
Q29. What are your three top environmental priorities over the next two years? Reduce energy consumption Reduce/recycle in-house waste Measure/reduce carbon footprint Use more recycled/recyclable materials ‘Upsell’ end print solutions that are recyclable Improve in-house energy generation Provide a takeback/recycle scheme
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78.61% 77.61% 54.71% 54.22% 23.38% 8.46% 2.98%
