Press release – 25 July, 2011New footage of dying tiger linked to toilet paper brands in AustraliaSydney, 25 July 2011
: Shocking new video footage, showing the agonising death of an endangered tiger, has been released today by Greenpeace, along with revelations linking the destruction of tiger habitats with toilet paper being sold in IGA supermarkets across Australia.
The video footage shows a Sumatran tiger, one of only around 400 remaining in the wild, caught in a wild boar trap. The tiger’s rainforest habitat is being destroyed by the notorious Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) (1), forcing the tiger to hunt for food in areas close to human activity. (2)
APP has aggressive expansion plans in Australia. Through its Australian affiliate Solaris, APP has opened a new $20 million facility in Sydney. APP’s toilet paper is being bought by IGA supermarkets and sold under the IGA-owned Black & Gold and IGA Signature brands. This contract makes IGA one of the biggest customers of APP products in Australia.
Reece Turner, Greenpeace Forests Campaigner said:
“This tragic footage shows the true cost of logging by Asia Pulp and Paper (APP).
“APP’s rainforest destruction is forcing tigers out of their homes. These destroyed habitats are being converted into toilet paper and sold by IGA to households across Australia.
“Greenpeace has been urging IGA to drop its contract with APP and its Australian affiliate Solaris for months but they refuse to take action and are still selling toilet paper made out of the last remaining rainforests in Indonesia.
“I hope the executives at IGA watch this footage and have a good, hard look at the choices they’re making. Australian households deserve better than the destructive products IGA are putting on their shelves.
“To ensure this tiger did not die in vain, IGA needs to drop its contracts with APP immediately.”
Greenpeace is encouraging Australians moved by the video footage to go
www.greenpeace.org.au
where they can send an email, asking IGA to ‘stop wiping out tigers’.
Individual IGA shop owners are also being urged to contact their head office and reject further supplies of Black & Gold and IGA Signature toilet paper.
Contact: Greenpeace Communications Officer, Jessa Latona – 0488 208 465
Notes:
(1) Asia Pulp and Paper is the pulp and paper division of the Sinar Mas group and is supplied by companies who are part of that same group, like PT. Arara Abadi. It was a PT Arara Abadi concession where this footage was taken. Concession map with
details including location where trap tiger was found and recent rainforest clearing can be seen here
.
(2) Dr. Tom Maddox, country coordinator for Indonesia at the Zoological society in London and an expert on tigers said: “Tigers are losing their natural habitat as the forest is cut down, mostly to make way for plantations for pulp and paper or palm oil. As available habitat declines, the few tigers that do survive are increasingly coming into contact with people. Sometimes this leads to conflict as tigers kill livestock, or occasionally people, and local retribution is usually swift. Other
times they will be caught in traps meant for other species, as appears to have happened in this case.”