Sappi targets book market with new range

The new Galerie Book papers are made at Sappi’s Kirkniemi Mill in Finland.

The first two products are Galerie Book Creamy, which comes in weights of 52, 55 and 60-gsm. Bulk specifications are 1.8, 2.0 and 2.2.

High-bulk variant Galerie Book Creamy Bulk is 52-gsm with 2.3 bulk “for enhanced opacity and improved feel”.

Sappi plans to add Galerie Book White at a future date.

Sappi said the move had come about due to customer demand for reliable, sustainable and versatile book paper options.

Head of sales for Galerie Book Joonas Järvinen said that book publishers have been seeking “greater supply chain resilience and more options in the book paper segment”.

“With the development of Galerie Book as part of our Galerie brand family, we're providing publishers with a credible alternative that matches the technical specifications demanded by the market while delivering the sustainability performance they require.”

Sappi said the papers have been specifically engineered to perform consistently across multiple printing methods including heatset, coldset and digital printing.

A Sappi spokesperson told Printweek the expansion had not been directly influenced by recent European mill closures, such as Kabel Premium Pulp and Paper in Germany.

“Kirkniemi mill is very well suited to producing book papers which is complementary to its present product and customer portfolio. Following discussions with customers we had clear feedback that they would welcome Sappi’s entry to this market, as a stable company with strong commitment to the sector,” the spokesperson said.

“Kabel’s closure may have had an impact on [Sappi’s] thinking but it’s not for us to speculate on those specifics, we did not enter this market due to the actions of any third parties.”

Successful trials of Galerie Book involving “multiple leading customers” have already taken place, with the papers now commercially available.

Galerie Book is sold directly via Sappi.

Kirkniemi is the biggest coated paper mill in the world. It runs three paper machines and has annual production capacity of 750,000 tonnes, making Sappi’s Galerie and Magno ranges. The mill has benefited from significant investments including an EUR 80-m multi-fuel boiler. Direct carbon emissions were reduced by 90% following the switch to bioenergy.

Sappi said the use of renewable biomass energy and clean purchased electricity have contributed to a 70% reduction in product carbon footprint, “aligning with the growing sustainability requirements of major publishers”.

Woodfibre is sourced from managed forests within a 300km radius, reducing transportation impacts, and the resource efficiency drive includes an advanced water management system that allows water to be reused up to 18 times before purification.

Kirkniemi also produces 300,000-tpa of bleached mechanical pulp for its own consumption. 

(Source: PrintWeek.com)