Paper and cardboard

RAW MATERIALS

- The principal raw material for paper and cardboard, the paper fibre, is a renewable material that is usually made from timber and has a high availability.
- Fibres are also produced during or from the waste streams of for example tomato and grape cultivation.
- There are several certification systems for the sustainable production of paper fibres, for example FSC and PEFC.
- A lot of recycled material is also used as raw material. This includes both paper fibres and recycled fibres from for example used textiles.

MASS

The relatively low mass of paper and cardboard packaging materials positively affects their environmental impact:
- limited amount of material used;
- limited energy consumption during transport.

TYPES OF PACKAGING MATERIALS

Because of the wide variety of available types of paper and cardboard, there are also many different types of packaging materials. This ranges from wraps, bags, and teabags to boxes and 3D-shaped pulp packaging.

PROCESS EFFICIENCY

Paper packaging materials can usually be delivered in flat form. They are given their 3D shape during the packaging process. As a result, these materials can be processed efficiently.

PROTECTION

- The barrier properties and chemical resistance of paper are extremely limited. That is why paper packaging materials are often combined with other materials, such as plastics or layers of metal. Examples include plastic bags in cereal boxes or the laminated barrier layers in beverage cartons. This impacts the recyclability of the material.
- The mechanical protection requires attention because of the risk of mechanical damage such as dents, tears, and susceptibility to moisture.

REUSE

Due to the vulnerability of the material, paper and cardboard packaging materials are only reused to a limited extent. The exception are sturdy transport boxes and pallet boxes.

COLLECTION

- Paper has a long tradition of collection and recycling. Paper and cardboard are collected from households in a variety of ways, for example via municipal collection services or by sports clubs.
- Paper and cardboard packaging materials are collected and recycled together with newspapers and other printed materials.
- Many businesses sign a contract with a waste collector to pick up their paper packaging materials.

SORTING AND RECYCLING

- Many countries have an efficient collection system in place for paper, and the material is easy to recycle. However, the number of possible cycles is limited to circa four to seven, because the quality of the fibres deteriorates during each recycling process.
- The use of protective layers and coatings affects the paper’s recyclability.
- Beverage cartons are recycled as well. Most municipalities collect these along with plastic and metal waste (PMD). The beverage cartons are processed in a different factory than other paper and cardboard materials. Currently, only the fibres are recovered.
- After collection, the types of paper and cardboard are sorted by quality, from Kraft paper to newspaper. Paper and cardboard producers purchase the material based on its quality and process it to make new paper and cardboard.
- The smallest fibres fall through the sieves used during the recycling process and are processed to make for example toilet paper.
- To preserve the paper cycle, a certain quantity of new fibres is always needed. This balance is achieved because cardboard packaging materials, which must withstand heavy loads, require longer – and therefore new – paper fibres. Solid cardboard and some types of folding cardboard can be made from shorter fibres.

USE OF THE RECYCLED MATERIAL

- Depending on its ultimate (packaging) application, it is important to use the right raw materials.
- By using fewer virgin wood fibres, the environmental impact of the paper production process is reduced. A paper fibre can be recycled and reused about seven times. This may slightly change the fibre’s properties, however, so fibres might be used for a different application after a few cycles.
- To maintain the balance between loss of material and the input of new material, parties in the chain strive to maximise the use of recycled fibres.
- In the Netherlands, 83% of all new paper and cardboard is made from recycled paper.
- In the case of paper and cardboard, the use of recycled material can make the packaging heavier. Because of the shorter fibres, slightly thicker material is needed to achieve a similar functionality.

CHALLENGES IN THE CHAIN

- The production of paper and cardboard packaging materials increasingly requires the use of certified virgin fibres (FSC/PEFC). These standards outline the requirements for sustainable forest management. Both standards concern the wood (fibre) component of the packaging materials.
- Paper and cardboard packaging materials may contain unwanted contaminants, such as mineral oils. When it comes to packaging made from recycled paper and cardboard, there are three sources of this contamination: printing ink, the paper production process itself, and incorrect disposal during collection. The paper industry is working on measures to counteract this contamination, for example by stimulating businesses to use different types of ink and by developing packaging solutions that make the migration of any harmful components impossible. Improvements to the detection methods used to identify and eliminate harmful components during the recycling processes are also being developed.