JAY — Verso Paper Corp.’s Androscoggin Mill in Jay has supplied all of the paper for this year’s Maine Tourism Association magazine: “Maine Invites You: Maine’s Official Tourism Planner,” according to mill spokeswoman Cherilee Burdick.

More than 300,000 copies of the tourism magazine are distributed internationally and throughout the state in response to visitor inquiries.

“It is great to gain a customer right here in our home state, especially at a time when the pulp and paper industry has experienced some of its toughest economic years. Our Androscoggin Mill tries to buy local as much as possible with all of our supplies and contracts, adding millions of dollars into the local economy. So, it is wonderful to have a Maine association support our mill in this way as well,” Androscoggin Mill Manager Marc Connor said in a news release.

The 209-page magazine highlights businesses, events and activities all over the state to show there is much more to Maine than most visitors may realize. Having the work that goes into this magazine stay in Maine was something the association said made sense.

“No one understands the global economy better than those of us in the tourism industry, Vaughn Stinson, chief executive officer of the Maine Tourism Association, said. “With that in mind, I wanted to do all that was possible to support Maine business. Once I secured the printer in Maine, the next step was figuring out if I could also have the paper made in Maine. In my case the great folks at The Dingley Press said they would do everything possible to accommodate my request. Of course, cost is always a consideration. Fortunately with the work done in Maine at Verso Paper in Jay we saved significantly on shipping costs, which made it less expensive to buy in state too,” he said.

For a copy of “Maine Invites You: Maine’s Official Travel Planner,” call the Maine Tourism Association at 1-888-624-6345.