About José De pina
In a March 2025 interview at the Fastmarkets Forest Products Europe Conference, José de Pina stated that he felt "much more uncertain about what the future holds" due to increasing complexity in the industry. He said the regulatory environment, while "well intended," needs to be "a lot simpler" and more predictable to avoid raising compliance costs and reducing competitiveness. De Pina expressed skepticism that Western firms would quickly return to Russia if the war ends, and said tariffs are "not a good thing" as they condition the free flow of products, though he added that Europe is a large market that will adapt.
In a June 2024 interview, de Pina criticized Taylor Swift's music, saying it is not at the level of The Beatles and that "the world is going crazy." He also commented on Swift's concert in Portugal, noting that the audience applauded everything and that the performance relied on playback. In a July 2021 interview, de Pina discussed sustainability at Altri, stating that the company uses renewable raw materials from certified sustainable forests and that sustainability is "part of the culture of the organization." He said the company has set long-term goals for water use, carbon emissions, and fossil fuel reduction, and that consumers are increasingly attentive to sustainability practices.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from José De pina's recent appearances.
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Transcript (7 segments)
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Interviewer0:17
What is the current situation of your company and the sector, and what will be the volume to meet the United Nations 2030 sustainability goals?
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José De pina0:28
We participate in the center of the pulp and paper sector, which is very associated with meeting the sustainability goals. Indeed, the sector uses renewable raw materials from sustainably managed forests with world-class forestry practices. This raw material is the most renewable for the industry and produces easily recyclable products that enable circularity and a circular economy. Consequently, I believe the sector is advanced in its potential to meet those goals. For our group, Altri, we established a sustainability advisory group last year that supports the board and also began addressing our long-term objectives with a 10-year horizon. We defined our 2030 commitments, which are tangible objectives with metrics, very substantive regarding what we intend to achieve in the next ten years, including social aspects of our forest-based industrial activity.
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Interviewer2:06
And how can companies innovate with sustainability initiatives?
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José De pina2:11
Innovation has many parameters. We start within a sustainability context: how to produce the same products with less impact. I think the most creative companies are the most sustainable. So creativity means looking at existing activities and reconfiguring them to supply products that meet functional requirements and extend good sustainability practices to the consumer. For us, we have done this for many years. Our markets are proximity markets, and our products are produced with high sustainability standards. For example, two of our three units are world benchmarks in water use, and this extends to raw material consumption, energy use, carbon emissions, and market proximity generates fewer emissions compared to other participants. If we consider the profitability of each product and the impact on clients and consumers, we can structure the value chain and our operations to transmit a sustainability footprint that is much more aligned with these goals. Now, ambitiously looking at the next ten years, we can take further steps to reduce that footprint. That is how we incorporate innovation and creativity.
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Interviewer4:29
What is the impact of sustainability on management practices?
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José De pina4:32
I think that today management practices are mandatory and unavoidable, and they must be part of any organization's culture. Practices become part of culture when they are acquired and the organization naturally operates that way, not forcing them. I believe this should be part of how companies operate, including ours. It is not new; we have had it for many years. We have our platform and how we benchmark; our objectives cover certified forest management, water consumption, carbon emissions, and fossil fuel use. We are at a very competitive level internationally. Looking at the next ten years, for example, our goal is to eliminate all fossil fuels in our activities. One of our units will very soon, within two to three years, become one of the first units in Europe to be completely free of fossil fuels. These practices are incorporated into our management practices, and they add value, allowing us to present our value proposition effectively and objectively. It is not just a buzzword; it is part of how we operate. The consumer recognizes and values those who follow good sustainability practices.
And I think increasingly, especially today with the health emergency, the consumer is more alert and attentive to good practices in terms of utility. What we need to improve is not only our own but the general credibility of information available to consumers so they can make informed decisions. It is not just a matter of need, interest, or ambition to align consumption with sustainability expectations and concerns, but that they can make correct decisions based on credible information. That is social. Only then will brands and the way consumers view economic agents and upstream companies, like ours that are prevalent, and many of the products the consumer uses.
