Eco-friendly packaging is a major buzzword and has been for a while. But what does eco-friendly mean? How can you ensure that you choose sustainable recycling packaging that is eco-friendly? Here we provide you with the facts and processes to ensure that you have the right tools when going green.
What Does Eco-Friendly Mean?
In order to ensure that your company is eco-friendly, it is important to first understand what this means for yourself and your company. The term eco-friendly refers to quite literally being friendly to your environment. According to the Oxford dictionary, the exact definition is “not harmful to the environment.”
To give you an idea of the impact cardboard has on our planet, here are some facts (One Earth Company) to show you why we take our cardboard footprint so seriously and follow going green:
- Recycling cardboard takes 75% of the energy needed to make new cardboard
- You can save 46 gallons of oil by recycling 1 ton of cardboard
Recycling Packaging
Reduce, re-use and recycle are terms often used.
Recycling packaging and cardboard doesn’t have to solely refer to taking your cardboard to a recycling plant. Other uses for cardboard boxes include:
USING CARDBOARD FOR STORAGE
Why not use your cardboard box as storage around your house? Too many DVD’s? Or maybe you are even moving house? Cardboard boxes are sturdy and multi-purpose making them ideal for transportation or storage in day to day life, outside of its parcel life.
USING CARDBOARD FOR ARTWORK
Leonardo Da Vinci step aside. Using recyclable materials for artwork is the new craze and can really make artists think outside the box.
USING CARDBOARD FOR PADDING
Cardboard doesn’t always need to be used as an external material. Instead, why not put the material to use and take advantage of its sturdy features by using the material for padding?
Once your cardboard box has finished its life as storage or artwork, freeing up the planet from using other resources, it is strongly advised that you recycle.
But…What Happens To Your Cardboard When You Recycle?
One of the great things about cardboard is that it can be recycled a number of times before the strength is compromised.
Once your cardboard box has embarked on its journey of transportation, once recycled, your box embarks on an entirely new journey. Here is the process as explained by Recycle now:
1) You do the right thing and place your card in a recycling bin or take it to the recycling plant
2) The card is then collected, sorted and graded
3) It is then pulped in a tank which contains water and some chemicals (at the paper mill)
4) This process then separates the fibres and it is screened to identify and filter out paper clips, labels and any other debris
5) This is then cleaned by being spun in a cone-shaped container
6) At this stage, the mixture is 99% water and 1% fibre
7) This mixture is then pumped onto the paper machine which is sprayed onto a fast-moving mesh, removing the majority of water
8) To ensure that more water is removed, the paper is then passed through a series of heated rollers
9) This material is then wound onto rolls
10) To make the rolls more manageable, they are then cut into smaller rolls
11) These smaller rolls are then packed ready to be made back into paper and cardboard boxes
“70-80% of the fibre used in the production of corrugated packaging is recycled fibre” – Quickbox
Our crms of recycling packaging goes beyond the cardboard itself. We also provide you with other eco-friendly supplies and take our sustainable packaging very seriously.
If you have any questions about the recycling process or are wanting corporate social responsibility in terms of recycling packaging goes beyond the cardboard itself. We also provide you with other eco-friendly supplies and take our sustainable packaging very seriously.
If you have any questions about the recycling process or are wanting to speak to one of our friendly team members about working with a company that truly cares about being eco-friendly and only providing you with sustainable recycling packaging, contact us today by emailing [email protected] or calling us on 01469 310041
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