The Beacon Press has become the first UK printer to use paper with a global eco-friendly stamp.

The East Sussex printer rolled off 20,000 copies of a 55pp Plan for Social Responsibility report for B&Q parent group King-fisher on the unique paper.

The stamp of approval guarantees its source in a "chain of custody" given by the Forest Stewardship Council. The international group promotes sustainable forest management.

Mark Fairbrass, chairman of the Uckfield-based firm, said: "We are the first printer to be able to put the logo on the paper. The FSC is terribly protective about the stamp.

"We had to isolate the paper and record it carefully when it arrived to prove other paper was not mixed in. Only when the council knows it is clean will it let you use the stamp."

The paper was specified by Kingfisher, supplied by PaperBack and run off a six-colour Heidelberg Speedmaster 102. Fairbrass said his 60-staff firm was in talks with BP, Orange and Sainsburys for material on the same paper.

"Merely stating printed on eco-friendly paper is no longer enough," he said. "Customers demand to know what environmental impacts take place at every stage of production."

Story by Jez Abbott