The Best Business Practices for Recycling Cardboard

Cardboard is one of the most marketable scrap materials in the market today. Recycling cardboard has significant economic advantages and postitive impacts on the environment. Reports show that recycling one ton of cardboard can save over 17 trees.

Before the recycling process, the cardboard is typically flattened and tied into a bundle with pieces of cardboard. Tape, product labels and other similar attachments can all be left on cardboard waste, and will be removed the recycling centre. By practising cardboard recycling, businesses can enhance their reputation as an eco-friendly company.

Today, we explain the ideal practices for cardboard recycling, from separating scrap materials to keeping the cardboard dry.

Separating Cardboard Materials

The way scrap materials are collected for recycling has a big impact on its value. Combining different kinds of scrap material can either reduce the quality or require additional sorting before it is recycled. Additional sorting incurs additional operational expenses in the recycling process. To avoid these costs, companies should source separate their cardboard waste.

Source separation deals with the immediate collection of a specific type of waste from the point where it enters a company’s waste stream. If your company receives large amounts of supplies in cardboard boxes, you must adopt a system that directly collects those boxes after they’re emptied.

You may consider establishing consolidation areas for each type of cardboard. Working with LKM Recycling helps you understand the best methods for grouping cardboard waste.

Contaminated Cardboard

Cardboard waste can become contaminated with substances that cannot be removed before it is recycled. These substances may be organic waste, powdered residue or grease. Although recycling companies allow an acceptable level of contamination, higher degrees of contamination may be rejected or lower the rebate value of the load.

To prevent these issues, keep contaminated materials separated from the bulk of your cardboard waste. Try collecting contaminated materials as a separate recycling stream to avoid reducing the value of your cardboard waste.

Keeping Cardboard Dry

The value of cardboard depends largely on its fibre quality. When cardboard fibres get wet and thus become more prone to tearing, the cardboard’s overall value drops. Make sure to keep your cardboard nice and dry for the recycling process.

Avoid storing it outdoors or anywhere in the workplace where it’s easily exposed to water, oils or other liquid substances. If the cardboard does get wet, consider recycling it separately from other dry waste or setting it aside to dry before adding it to the rest of your load.

Minimise Cardboard Waste in Landfills

As cardboard becomes a huge commodity in the waste industry, the need for cardboard recycling increases. Companies that do not practice proper cardboard recycling usually send large amounts of cardboard to landfills. To counter the rising piles of cardboard in landfills, an eco-conscious approach to how you dispose of company waste materials can be added to your corporate social responsibility (CSR) agenda.

At LKM Recycling, we help you minimise the amount of cardboard sent to landfills with a reliable cardboard recycling service. We provide punctual cardboard collection services that leave you with one less requirement to worry about. We accept all forms of loose and baled paper and cardboard waste.

For more information about our recycling services, call 01795 439393.