Brown Paper

I don't see enough brown paper... all my paper is white. Why is it white? I don't know! I know that some of it is white because I write on it or print on it and want to use many different colours to do so. However, I definately am not interested in writing on facial tissue, bathroom tissue, or paper towel. (Chem lab is excluded from the last.)

So why is all this paper white? This paper makes up the bulk of my paper consumption, as most of my written material is done solely electronically, or perhaps with only the final draft printed.

Paper is definately not white by nature. If I go chop down a tree, it's mostly yellow inside with brown rings. When it is pulped to make paper, it goes that familiar tan colour that newsprint has. So why aren't all these papers used almost exclusively for body-wiping and mess cleanup their natural tan colour?

Certainly there must be some reagent involved in turning tan coloured pulp into white coloured pulp. Certainly we could save tonnes of bleach and tonnes of money by leaving them tan. Not to mention the environment.