Italian forest certification system submitted for endorsement

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) today announced that nearly 68% of paper consumed in the United States (67.9%) was recycled in 2022. The paper recycling rate held approximately steady to the 2021 rate and has remained consistently high. In fact, the paper recycling rate has met or exceeded 63% each year since 2009. In 2022, the recycling rate for old corrugated containers (OCC), also known as cardboard, was 93.6%, an increase over last year's rate. Meanwhile, the 3-year average (2020-2022) for OCC was 91.3%.

In a time of renewed emphasis on reducing waste, paper recycling rates for products and packaging set the industry apart. Many states have introduced legislation, called extended producer responsibility bills, that target how consumer products are disposed after use. Several of these proposals aim to make producers responsible for managing the disposal of various goods in an effort to keep them out of landfills. Examples include mattresses, plastic packaging, chemicals, electronics and more. Paper-based packaging has been included in some proposals, but the good news is paper recycling rates are already high. Even during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, which saw an increase in single-use everything, 65.7 percent of paper consumed in the United States was recycled, according to research by the American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA).

With an increase of more than 5.5 million hectares of PEFC-certified forest area over the past year, China has been recognized for the greatest increase in forest certification by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) during PEFC Forest Certification Week last week. PEFC Spain received the award for the highest increase in number of PEFC Chain of Custody certified companies.