By Elizabeth Puranam
Is the toilet paper you are using contributing to the destruction of the Indonesian rainforest?
Greenpeace are urging people not to use Cottonsoft products saying the Kiwi company is playing a part in wiping out the Sumatran tigers' habitat.
Cottonsoft says Greenpeace are misinformed, but one retailer is now reconsidering whether they should stock the brand.
There are thought to be less than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the world today.
And Greenpeace says Cottonsoft is destroying their habitat.
“Greenpeace are deeply concerned that Cottonsoft are supplying toilet paper to the New Zealand market that's been linked to rainforest destruction. This destruction is destroying the last home of some of the world's most endangered species, including the Sumatran tiger,” says Greenpeace spokesman Nathan Argent.
Greenpeace had Cottonsoft's toilet paper sampled by an independent laboratory in America after the company refused to disclose where it was sourcing its paper from.
It found their products, supplied by conglomerate Asia Pulp & Paper or APP, contained rain forest timber.
“The footage that we released shows a Sumatran tiger was trapped and killed on an APP concession. Now APP are the world's most notorious rain forest destroyers and they are supplying Cottonsoft’s toilet paper,” says Mr Argent.
But Cottonsoft says Greenpeace have no credible evidence to support the allegations, and that their testing methods are imperfect because often fibre is too processed to correctly identify.
“In some cases, they actually have unknown fibre and at that point they've supposed they are tropical rainforest. That actually means that they've based their supposition on guess work,” says Cottonsoft general Manager Kim Calvert.
Cottonsoft say Greenpeace are putting 130 Kiwi workers' jobs at risk by asking the New Zealand public to boycott their products.
The Warehouse has suspended all orders from Cottonsoft, pending a further investigation.
Greenpeace are urging the two main supermarket owners, Food Stuffs and Progressive, to follow the Warehouse's example. Both companies say they are monitoring the situation and considering Greenpeace's request.
3 News