AF&PA, Fibre Box Association update voluntary standard for recycling cardboard

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA), Washington, and the Fibre Box Association (FBA), Itasca, Illinois, have updated their “Voluntary Standards for Repulping and Recycling Coated or Treated Corrugated Fiberboard and its Equivalents in the Old Corrugated Containers (OCC) Recycling Stream,” providing what the organizations say is an industry-supported set of test protocols that evaluate whether products like coated or treated cardboard packaging are repulpable and recyclable.

A joint committee of AF&PA and FBA members developed the updated voluntary standards, which aim to help the industry evaluate coatings and treatments to ensure packaging can be repulped and recycled using common mill technology. The joint committee says the latest update was published in alignment with current mill technology and manufacturing practices.

“Our industry is committed to continuous improvement and capturing as much paper-based material from the waste stream as possible,” AF&PA Vice President of Industry Affairs Terry Webber says. “This voluntary standard will help our industry develop innovative coatings and treatments for cardboard packaging to meet customer needs, while also ensuring they can be validated as repulpable and recyclable.”

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The latest publication updates joint AF&PA-FBA “Voluntary Standard for Repulping and Recycling Corrugated Fiberboard Treated to Improve its Performance in the Presence of Water and Water Vapor,” published in 2013.

“It is desirable from both increased recyclable fiber availability and environmental standpoints to encourage the development of coated or treated corrugated that may be recycled into other paper products using common mill technology,” the voluntary standard says.

The update establishes a screening method to determine repulpability and recyclability of OCC and its equivalents. Repulpability is determined by establishing percent fiber yield and percent rejects when only the test material is processed in accordance with the standard, while recyclability is determined by evaluating the test material’s effect on mill operations and finished products when it is added to untreated corrugated.

“The repulpability and recyclability test procedures in the revised voluntary standard deliver results that are valid, reliable and repeatable,” FBA President and CEO Bob McIlvaine says. “This voluntary standard ensures our industry can repulp that packaging and turn it into other products.”

The full updated voluntary standard, with details on testing procedures and results, is available to download on the AF&PA website.