Pitting Packaging Materials Against Each Other Misses The Bigger Picture BY RACHEL KAGAN Recent media articles on the potential of paper packag- ing to replace some of the single-use plastic items being
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banned in Canada, such as shop- ping bags and take-out food contain- ers, miss the bigger picture of waste management and consumption in Canada. Some articles have shared con- cerns raised by some environmen- talists about shifting from plastic to
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AES is a leading full-service provider of integrated convey- ance systems specializing in scrap, trim, and dust. AES en- gineers custom scrap systems and works as a partner in process improvement to help businesses achieve greater profitability, productivity, and sustainability. Products include balers, shredders/hoggers, core shredders, filters, fans, and specialized dust control and collection systems. AES is the ex- clusive distributor for the AirShark Rotary Material Separator. For a wide variety of new and used equipment on to- day’s market, visit our website at www.acm-corp.com. BAUMER HHS CORPORATION www.baumerhhs.com hhs is a global leader in advanced gluing, camera verifica- tion and quality assurance systems for the packaging indus- try. Zero-defect quality and elevated production speeds are key parameters in the manufacturing of corrugated boxes. With hhs Xcam Box Monitoring and non-contact flap gluing of corrugated board, hhs offers every option for quality as- surance in the production of boxes with flexo folder gluers. AMERICAN CORRUGATED MACHINE www.acm-corp.com BLOWER APPLICATION COMPANY (BLOAPCO) www.BloApCo.com BloApCo has served the corrugated industry since 1933 with a variety of scrap handling solutions, including Hori- zontal Floor Shredders, Trim Cutters, and Material Handling Fans and Conveying Systems. BloApCo Shredders allow for continuous shredding and pneumatic removal of sheet waste stacks of all sizes, roll slab, cores, and carton scrap.
Rachel Kagan
paper packaging materials, but they miss providing fact- based information on how paper packaging is made, how forests are managed in Canada, the function of packaging, the rise of consumption, and the role of the consumer. The major paper packaging grades made in Canada – which include containerboard (used to make corrugated cardboard boxes), boxboard (e.g., cereal or shoe boxes), and Kraft paper (used for bags and sacs) – are made from a highly recyclable and renewable material that is used repeatedly through the process of recycling. And yet some articles refer to paper packaging as “sin- gle-use,” but on average, paper packaging fibres can be recovered and reused at least five to seven times. Focusing on the term “single-use” can miss the point about the larger issues surrounding waste management and consumption, and divert attention away from the fed- eral government’s overarching goal of reducing plastic pollution. In essence, all packaging materials – be it glass, metal, plastic, or paper – can be considered single-use, but it’s clear that some are more successfully recycled than oth- ers. Paper packaging is one of those successful examples. It has an established recycling system and end markets in place to capture used paper packaging so that those ma- terials can be recovered and recycled to make new paper packaging products again and again. While most paper packaging made in Canada is pro- duced with recycled content, the paper fibres it was origi- nally made from came from a tree. However, the Canadian paper packaging industry doesn’t use much in the way of freshly cut trees, and the little that is harvested must be successfully regenerated by Canadian law. Some of the articles refer to deforestation without ex- plaining what that means. There is an important distinction between deforestation and harvesting. Deforestation is when forest land is permanently cleared, with trees be- ing removed so that the land can be used for something else. Harvesting, forest fires, and insect infestations do not constitute deforestation, since the affected areas will grow back. The Canadian government conserves and protects its forests through strict laws and science-based sustain-
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July 17, 2023
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