Recent research conducted by Innofibre found that recycled food and beverage cartons show great potential for use in making moulded fiber packaging. Currently, no manufacturer of such packaging in North America uses pulp made wholly or partly from fiber derived from recycled cartons.

For the research, Innofibre, a Quebec-based applied research center, produced pulp from recycled food and beverage cartons, which it then transformed into moulded products using two commonly used techniques: transfer moulding and thermoforming. 

“Our tests confirmed that recycled carton fiber pulp has similar mechanical and physical properties to virgin kraft pulp,” explains principal researcher at Innofibre, Eric Desnoes. “This means that we can manufacture high-quality moulded products with it.” 

According to the researcher, the strength of carton pulp is significantly higher than that of mechanical pulp, such as that obtained from old newspaper, which is currently the pulp most frequently used for moulded products made from recycled fibers. In addition, the research concludes that carton pulp would be particularly suitable for industrial manufacturing, given the relatively short production time of items and a shrinkage rate that does not interfere with nesting.

“Packaging made of recycled carton pulp could be used to contain or protect a wide variety of products in the food and non-food industries,” says Isabelle Faucher, managing director of Carton Council of Canada, which commissioned the research. 

The partnership with Innofibre aims to encourage the emergence of new local recyclers for cartons collected in Canada, with possibilities in the U.S. as well. The Carton Council hopes to collaborate with pulp and moulded packaging manufacturers in both countries who would be willing to further explore the possibilities offered by recycled carton pulp. 

The full Innofibre research report can be downloaded here.