Paper recycling

In recent years, China has become one of the leading export outlets for recovered fibre surpluses that arise around the world. However, they will be shutting their doors before the end of the year. This will mean that countries in Europe and the rest of the world that currently don’t have the capability to “rehome” the surplus paper themselves, will be expected to find other export locations. Solutions to help the paper recycling sector include taxes and mandatory recycled contents.

Jean-Luc Petithuguenin founder and CEO of Paprec Group (based in France), has said that he is optimistic in regards to the future of paper. It seems that if the plastic industry does not address its very weak recycled content, it could begin a movement away from plastic packaging to another alternative, which may be paper.

Any increase in the use of landfill or burning of the paper would have a negative effect on the carbon footprint. However, out of the total number of paper and board that was produced globally in 2018 (420 million) it’s been found that over half had contained recycled fibres. This shows that the paper recycling industry is moving in the right direction.

At STE Waste Management we recycle 100% of our paper shredding and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

Read more about our Shredding and Recycling services for both commercial clients and domestic households.