CORRUGATED CARDBOARD
April 2000
INTRODUCTION
Corrugated cardboard is used to make containers for shipping
products to factories, warehouses, retail stores, offices and homes. It
has corrugated (wavy) inside layers, sandwiched between layers of
linerboard1, which acts as a protective instrument against the rigours of
shipping and storage.
However, corrugated cardboard is a bulky material, taking up a lot of
waste collection efforts and space in landfills. Consequently, many
municipalities across Ontario have banned it from their landfills. Yet, the
province continues to discard about 70,000 metric tonnes of waxed
corrugated cardboard and 350,000 metric tonnes of non-waxed
corrugated cardboard2. This has prompted widespread collection and
recycling efforts. In fact, corrugated cardboard is now one of the most
recycled of all packaging materials. According to the 1996 National
Packaging Survey commissioned by the Canadian Council of Ministers
of the Environment, corrugated cardboard packaging has a national
recovery rate of 80 per cent, and a national recycling rate of 77 per
cent3. In 1998, 38, 852 tonnes of old corrugated cardboard, plus a
portion of the 32, 218 tonnes of corrugated cardboard mixed with
other paper, was sold for recycling by Ontario municipalities4. Further,
the average recycled content of Canadian-made corrugated boxes
shipped domestically reached a record high of 59 per cent in 1998,
compared to 37 per cent ten years ago5.Recycled corrugated boxes
are used to make new corrugated containers, giftwrap, boxboard
cartons, roofing felt, flower pots and biodegradable gardening
supplies6.
HOW IS CORRUGATED CARDBOARD MADE?
Only 13 per cent of corrugated cardboard is made from logs. Most
new linerboard and corrugated medium are made from old
corrugated boxes and wood chips, shavings and sawdust left over
from wood-processing operations. These left-overs are pulped and
made into new linerboard or corrugated medium on a board
machine. They are then formed into various container shapes7.
HOW IS CORRUGATED CARDBOARD RECYCLED?
The separation of contaminants from the cardboard is a crucial first
step in the recycling process to keep machinery working properly and
to achieve good quality paper. After this is completed, corrugated
boxes are dumped into a pulper where moisture is added to create a
‘slush’. The ‘slush’ is then pumped through small holes at the bottom of
the pulper and passed through spinning cleaners to remove staples,
broken glass and plastics. The fibres are broken down, and water is
drained from the ‘slush’ to produce a smooth ‘stock’. Waxes,
adhesives, fine plastic particles, grit and glass are removed from the
stock by passing it through pressure screens. The final screened stock is
pressed to remove water and then dried8.
Roughly 68 per cent of old corrugated cardboard is used to make new
corrugated containers. However, it is also used for the production of
other goods such as:
 kraft paper used by manufacturers for bags and wrap
 tubes and core board used by manufacturers for tissue towelling,
giftwrap, and textiles
 boxboard containers
 gypsum wallboard liner and roofing felt used in home renovation
and building
 packaging materials used for shipping and sale of breakable
objects such as fluorescent light bulbs and china
 flower pots and biodegradable gardening supplies used by
greenhouses and garden outlets9
REDUCING, REUSING, AND RECYCLING EFFORTS
Many companies are emphasizing the reduction, reuse, and recycling
of corrugated containers. For example, Cobblestone packaging that
buys custom corrugated containers from businesses, now also accepts
used and overrun containers, often termed ‘old corrugated
cardboard’ (OCC). The company buys them for about a penny each
and sells them at the going rate which fluctuates with supply and
demand. Cobblestone sells to 650 companies, most of whom are not
concerned with any writings or markings on the packaging. One
customer, Canadian Tire, uses overrun boxes for inter-house shipping10.
There are also four mills in Ontario that use OCC in their manufacturing.
These are the Domtar mills in Trenton and Mississauga, the Atlantic
Packaging mill in Scarborough, and Paperboard Industries in Toronto.
Paperboard Industries have two mill, one in Toronto and the other in
Vancouver. The Toronto plant purchases 1, 500 tonnes of OCC per
month, as well as other grades of paper. The wastepaper is used in the
manufacture of linerboard (the liner of the corrugated container) and
boxboard11.
In addition, some municipalities such as Guelph and the Township of
North Dorchester collect corrugated cardboard from schools. In some
places there are also depots set up for corrugated cardboard, alone
or in combination with other materials. For example, the Wellington
County Recycling Program, which involves 21 municipalities, has a
depot for OCC, used mainly by the industrial, commercial and
institutional sectors. OCC recovery and consumption are based largely
on economic factors. Increased demand for containerboard, high
costs for virgin fibres, the export market, and mill expansion will all help
to increase the demand for OCC. Such an increase will also result from
the escalating disposal fees and landfill bans on corrugated
cardboard12.
ENDNOTES
1 Resource
Integration System
Calvin Chong and Bob Hamersma, Growing Plants with Recycled
Cardboard (Journal of Composting and Recycling BioCycle), March
1995, p.86-7.
3 Paper and Paperboard Packaging Environmental Council, “About
Corrugated Boxes” <http://www.ppecpaper.com/zip/corrugated.htm>
4 Municipal 3Rs 1998 Factsheet, 3Rs Information Partnership
5 Refer to Reference 3
6 Refer to Reference 1
7 Refer to Reference 3
8 Norampak Mississauga Linerboard Mill Factsheet
9 Refer to Reference 1
10 Bob Yudin, Cobblestone Packaging
11 Paperboard Industries, (416) 461-8261
12 Refer to Reference 1
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