A Dutch software company is so determined to go paperless that it has replaced toilet paper in the bathrooms with what it calls a ‘shower toilet’, according to the Parool newspaper.

The company in Noordwijk develops paperless document management systems and has abandoned paper in meetings. Notebooks and coloured post-it notes have gone and all printed post is returned with a note asking for future communication to be digital.

But now Decos has gone one step further, by replacing toilet paper with a new sort of loo, complete with a water spray and drier. ‘Colleagues at the coffee machine have been positive,’ spokeswoman Marcia van Kampen says.

The Gerberit Aqua Clean includes a heated seat and the water is at body temperature, so it is comfortable to use.

‘It started out as a joke but we think the whole world will go digital,’ she told the paper. ‘And this toilet is more hygienic and better for the environment, although we still have to do the calculations on that one.’

Paper testing

Meanwhile, American media took great delight last week in a photograph apparently show a toilet testing paper area for Jumbo supermarket customers.

ABC television circulated a photograph showing a toilet with a wall featuring six different types of toilet paper and the text ‘test here your favourite toilet paper’.

In fact the wall is in the Jumbo training school in Tilburg and is supposed to help new staff learn more about the company’s products. Despite the international interest, the family-owned supermarket group says it has no plans to introduce toilet paper testing for customers.