UPFRONT - JANUARY 2009
Dear Reader,
Happy New Year! Welcome back to the office, after what I hope has been a good sunshine- and braai-filled December break.
After an office burglary in the
holidays left me without a computer and without any of my precious emails, I could not help but start out 2009 with my slate wiped clean. After the initial panic of lost documents had subsided, it began to dawn on
me that this (somewhat misguided) opportunity to completely start afresh is actually rather pleasant. Although some successes of last year were partially lost, so too were the mistakes that went with it –
leaving me with a better mindset to begin the year in baggage-free earnest.
Having said this, it is good to note that 2009 has been named the International Year of Reconciliation – an entire year in
which to wipe clean the slates of others; to give them another chance to better themselves. Our ability to forgive and forget seems to have been lost somewhere along the road to a post-apartheid rainbow nation. What
a better country we could have if we brought reconciliation back into the workplace, for a start.
2009 has also been set aside by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN as the International Year of
Natural Fibres, which aims to raise the profile of natural fibres. The heralding of 2009 as a year of natural fibres stems from the increasing use of synthetic fibres and the subsequent loss of market share by
natural fibres.
Promoting measures to improve the efficiency and sustainability of production is also an important aspect of the Year, as well as the encouragement of appropriate policy responses from
governments to the problems faced by natural fibre industries like pulp and paper. This could prove a good boost to talks between our industry and DWAF, for one. For more information on the International Year of
Natural Fibres, visit www.naturalfibres2009.org.
But 2009 has already been set aside in most of our minds as the unofficial Year of
Just Scraping Through. Following large-scale retrenchments and general down-sizing, it is predicted that South Africa's unemployment levels will increase to around 25% in the first quarter of 2009, which will no
doubt have a knock-on affect on crime statistics. Market soothsayers also predict a returned hike of commodity prices this year. Our own industry faces plans of production declines in a number of pulp and paper
mills, as well as slowed export demand for fibre.
It is indeed the year to grit one's teeth, let go of all our financially and physically draining baggage, and trudge on with the bare necessities. With this
in mind, this issue of the TAPPSA Journal compares the latest paper chemical technologies that will help to save the papermaker time, money, energy and natural resources.
We also discuss with Patrick Kyme,
General Manager of NCT, the impact that the export of woodchips is having on pulp prices and the rural growers of our industry. With a substantial portion of the global woodchip market currently supplied by
fibre-strapped South Africa, this is a pertinent topic.
Please note that we have also included the programme for the TAPPSA Berg Conference in this issue. The conference will be held at our usual venue, the
spectacular Champagne Sports Resort (Drakensberg) from the 13-15 February. The conference looks to be just as much of a hit as last year, with a wide range of interesting speakers who will be addressing the
conference theme of "Industry Challenges & Opportunities". If you have yet to register for the Conference, please do so as soon as possible to avoid missing out on this great Valentine's Day
weekend away.
With a year of ups and downs awaiting us, it seems fit to end our first Upfront of 2009 with a few words of wisdom. To borrow a phrase from the legendary Alan Knott-Craig, Head of i-burst,
"Life is not about waiting for storms to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain."
Here's to getting very wet in 2009.
Jodie Davies-Coleman
