Business | Talking Point
talks to... Josh Birch...
Having been part of the company for seven years, Josh Birch is set to become Two Sides’ managing director in the new year. Assistant editor, Benjamin Austin sat down with
Jonathan Tame’s successor as he shares his thoughts on the industry, the challenges facing the organisation and his plans for its future.
How did you get into the industry? I joined Two Sides almost seven years ago now and, although I didn’t come from a traditional print or paper background, I quickly became aware of how big and incredibly diverse our industry is. Working at Two Sides has given me exposure to almost every part of the print, paper and paper-based packaging value chain, from forestry and paper manufacturing through to printers, publishers, packaging producers, postal operators and brands.
What attracted you to it? What struck me quite quickly was the gap between the reality of the industry and public perception, including my own before I joined Two Sides. There are still widespread misconceptions around paper, from forests and recycling to the assumption that switching from paper to digital is automatically better for the environment. The opportunity to educate and help close that gap really appealed to me. Two Sides takes what can be complicated research and sustainability information and turns it into clear, credible communications that businesses and consumers can understand.
When did you join Two Sides? What career path has led you to MD? I joined Two Sides in 2019 with my very fi rst working day at the annual Power of Print seminar in London. It was certainly a very busy and full-on introduction to the industry. Since I joined, I’ve gradually taken on greater responsibility across our communications, research, campaigns and member engagement. This has included developing and rebranding both Two Sides and Love Paper, our Anti-Greenwash campaign, conducting and expanding the Trend Tracker consumer research, producing industry resources and organising events. From January 1, I’ll succeed Jonathan Tame as managing director of Two Sides Europe. I’m fortunate to be taking over an organisation with a very strong foundation.
22 | October/November 2026
What are the key challenges that are being faced by Two Sides? Perception remains one of the biggest challenges. Our 2025 Trend Tracker research, covering 12,400 consumers across 17 countries, showed that misconceptions around forestry, recycling and the environmental impacts of paper persist. As the industry evolves, so too must Two Sides. Historically, we’ve been closely associated with graphic papers and print, but paper-based packaging is now an increasingly important part of our work. We need to make sure our messaging, research and membership proposition evolve alongside the industry while remaining a trusted source of credible environmental information.
How far is greenwashing a big issue in the industry? It remains a signifi cant issue. For many years we’ve challenged organisations using claims such as ‘Go Green, Go Paperless’ or ‘Save Trees. Go Paperless’, which create the misleading impression that switching to digital communications is inherently better for the environment. More recently, we’ve seen greenwashing becoming increasingly relevant within packaging too. As brands look for new materials and ways to demonstrate their sustainability credentials, we’re seeing claims around alternative fi bres, recyclability, carbon and ‘tree-free’ packaging that aren’t always supported by robust evidence or fair comparisons. This is an area where I see our Anti-Greenwash campaign expanding. Two Sides isn’t there to say one material or solution is always better than another; our role is to challenge misleading claims about print, paper and paper-based packaging and encourage environmental comparisons to be specifi c, evidence-based and substantiated.
How is Two Sides looking to address issues within the industry?
Education is at the heart of what we do. We produce fact sheets, research, insight reports, videos,
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