Sustainable Earth By Staples™ Copy Paper

[wallylynn]

(fiberdrunk posted that bagass is available at staples so now i'm off my tush to post this review that i drafted in June)

Introduction
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Wow, this has been a long time coming. After many years of waiting, I finally got some bagasse copy paper. For those unfamiliar with bagasse, it is sugar cane fiber, as opposed to run of the mill tree fiber. Rather than growing trees (yes, most paper is from farmed trees, not natural forest) and pulping them, bagasse is the waste sugar cane stalks from sugar production after the juices are squeezed out. Often it's burned to boil the sugar water/sap. Here it's made into paper.

Historical Background
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Several years ago, 2009-2010-ish, Canefields made a splash with their bagasse paper. But it was backlogged, I think FPNers who ordered eventually got it after 6 months or something (and for free to make up for the delay). Even now it's still difficult to get. A ream costs $6-7 which is not bad, but paper is bulky and heavy and shipping is twice the paper itself for a total of $20 easily. I supposed I could have bought a case of 5 reams for $30 from a local office supplier, but I didn't need 5 reams.

Around the same time, Staples introduced their Eco-Easy line of products: notebooks, filler paper (for 3-ring binders schoolwork), and various other office items. The paper used being bagasse paper. They got good reviews by FPNers for being smooth and feather and bleed resistant. The Eco-Easy was later rebranded Sustainable Earth. Heh, there was a bit of sadness in the interim when Eco-easy went on clearance and disappeared.

This month was the first time I've seen plain bagasse copy paper from staples. Coincidentally, I need to print a lot of stuff. And because I think it's a new product, there was a $25 off coupon. $60-25 = $35 for the case of 10 reams. Sure beats a ream of Canefields.

Specs
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As copied from the packaging

Size: Letter (8.5" x 11")
Weight: 20lb (75g/m^2)
Color: White
Brightness: 92
Composition: 95% sugarcane. "tree-free paper is made from sugarcane (bagasse) fibers and bamboo fibers..."
Origin: Made in Argentina



Review
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This is the first time I've heard of Bagasse from Argentina. Usually the recommendation is to look for made in Brazil. Bagasse from other places don't seem as FP friendly according to the reviews.

To test the paper I loaded my Ahab with BSB (diluted). Not a completely fair test but I like my BSB less saturated. Full strength BSB is too dark and violet for my taste. Dilution lets a bit of the white paper show through and becomes closer to pure blue. It also allows a bit of shading but I don't care about that.

The color is odd. From a distance, the color is grey. Maybe because my regular copy paper is 96 bright. But head on, it's hard to tell the difference from the regular Staples copy paper.

The feel is fine, no worse than regular copy paper. I can't really tell if it's any smoother or not.

The biggest difference is that the bagasse paper is more resistant to bleed-through. I'm able to use my BSB on it with out the little dots on the other side.


Conclusion
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Glad I got it. Now I can use BSB more often. I won't use it everyday since regular copy paper suffices. But if I want to use a less behaving ink, I now have a supply of paper that can handle them.

I'll bind my next journal refill using this and see how well that goes. 32lb paper is quite thick and heavy and I'd like something thinner.

If anyone wants, send me a SASE and I'll fit as many sheets as postage will allow.

 

 

[fiberdrunk]

Thank you for the great review! One question... you mentioned the paper is 95% sugarcane and 5% bamboo. The product Q&A on the Staples website said the paper was 5% FSC certified pine-- but maybe that was just another customer answering the question there and they got it wrong. I think I'd be happier if it were bamboo rather than pine (it'd probably age better).

[wallylynn]

The packaging doesn't actually say what the last 5% is, only that it's tree-free and that it does contain bamboo.

 

[fiberdrunk]

Thanks!

[inkstainedruth]

Interesting. I have a few of the sugarcane composition books that Staples sells, but had not seen the copy paper before. How does it compare price-wise to other brands (including theirs)? The composition books are more expensive (okay, it's hard to beat the price of the back-to-school ones on sale for a buck), but sometimes they go on sale.

Had I but known. I was just in a Staples on Sunday buying something else....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: Oh rats! I just read the other thread about the copy paper. Didn't know it was only available online. Sigh.

If I'm going to have to be buying stuff that way, I might as well save up the moolah to get a Vanishing Point as well.... Which means it's not happening any time soon.

Edited July 23, 2013 by inkstainedruth

[fiberdrunk]

ETA: Oh rats! I just read the other thread about the copy paper. Didn't know it was only available online. Sigh.

If I'm going to have to be buying stuff that way, I might as well save up the moolah to get a Vanishing Point as well.... Which means it's not happening any time soon.

 

Yes, that's frustrating, isn't it? We're forced into having to buy entire cases. Office Max is the same way with their sugarcane paper. Grrrrrr....