Andrew Jack looks at an annual report, which is more than just packaging

The objects are part of a thick section containing multilingual diaries and photographs of BSO employees from around the world on October 27 last year - a date chosen at random.

Mr. Eckart Wintzen, president and chief executive, said: "We think annual reports are never read. People flick through them and ignore all the company blurb as fluff. This may be fluff but it is fluff of a higher quality."

Past editions of the annual report include one written on the company by an anthropologist, and one designed for children aged 12, which had to be reprinted to meet demand for about 35,000 copies.

As well as the financial information for the year to December 31, the report also contains a detailed environmental statement, which attempts to measure the company's impact and how much it has spent to mitigate these, effects. The report is printed on chlorine-free paper.