The Circular Life of a Cardboard Box: Understanding the Role of Recycling

The simple corrugated cardboard box, strong and light, is a bedrock of the American economy. From big-box behemoth stores to the local mom-and-pop, almost every product sold in the United States is at some point contained in cardboard.

For many companies, used cardboard presents a headache. It piles up, sometimes by the ton, behind stores, in warehouses, stockrooms and loading docks around the country, taking up valuable real estate, impeding business and, in some cases, creating a risk to human health and a fire hazard. A store can be shut down by a health official or a fire marshal simply because there is too much cardboard piling up behind the store.

Fortunately, corrugated cardboard is also one of the most recyclable materials in use today. In 2023, 71-76 percent of cardboard was recycled. Ensuring that recycled fiber is collected and fed back into our manufacturing process is a key component of the circular product lifecycle.

At International Paper we believe in circularity—recapturing and reusing as much of the raw materials of our business as possible. The more we recycle, the fewer resources we use to create new boxes, and the more sustainable our way of life becomes. As one of the world’s largest consumers of wood pulp, and by extension recycled pulp, International Paper occupies a unique and important position in the life of a cardboard box—and in the environmental sustainability of America’s natural resources. We use virgin pulp from sustainably-managed forests, but we also source millions of tons of used cardboard from department stores, large retailers, grocery chains and others. We then transport and process that recycled material into new boxes.

It is this end-to-end circular model that sets our approach apart from almost every other cardboard recycler.

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About International Paper 
International Paper (NYSE: IP; LSE: IPC) is the global leader in sustainable packaging solutions. With company headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee, USA, and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) headquarters in London, UK, we employ more than 65,000 team members and serve customers around the world with operations in more than 30 countries. Together with our customers, we make the world safer and more productive, one sustainable packaging solution at a time. Net sales for 2024 were $18.6 billion. In 2025, International Paper acquired DS Smith creating an industry leader focused on the attractive and growing North American and EMEA regions. Additional information can be found by visiting internationalpaper.com