End Market Options for Cartons are Expanding

SEATTLE (Waste 360): Many recyclers are struggling with how to adjust to China’s waste import ban and contamination standard, as many commodities are in danger of being landfilled due to a lack of end markets. But for food and beverage cartons, end market options are growing along with opportunities for recycling.

Since its inception in 2009, the Carton Council of North America has encouraged owners of materials recycling facilities (MRFs) to separate cartons into Grade #52. Because of this effort, China has never been a market for post-consumer carton loads coming from the U.S., making cartons a valuable commodity with a growing number of end markets.

“When we set out to create the Carton Council, we had a vision to keep cartons out of the landfill, and we did that by looking strategically at end markets,” says Derric Brown, vice president of sustainability at the Carton Council of North America. “We began working with communities across the country to help them add the equipment they need to sort cartons into Grade #52, and then moved on to expand our communication by working with communities to get the word out about recycling cartons and working with brands to add the recycling logo on their cartons. The logo is helpful because consumers often look to packaging first to see if an item is recyclable.”

When the Carton Council was formed, there was a limited number of domestic end market options in the U.S.—there was only one facility. But today, there are several facilities that accept cartons and process them into pulp for different types of paper products or tissue. ReWall in Des Moines, Iowa, for example, makes green building products out of food and beverage cartons. ReWall can accept up to 600 tons per month of Grade #52, so it’s a very effective and efficient user of cartons, comments Brown.

The number of facilities accepting cartons for recycling is also growing.

The Kent County, Mich., Recycling and Education Center recently underwent a $1.5 million equipment upgrade to improve its recycling efficiency and to add dairy cartons and juice boxes to its list of accepted materials. The equipment added to the facility by CP Group includes a new corrugated cardboard screen, additional optical sorting equipment and conveyor system refurbishment. These upgrades allow the facility to accept paper cartons and mechanically sort corrugated cardboard to keep up with the community’s growing recycling needs.

Courtesy: https://waste360.com