Paperboard

Paperboard is distinct from what is simply called paper, because paperboard is made up of multiple layers of paper bonded together to make a sturdy, board-like product. Paperboard weighs more than regular paper.  It is thicker and more rigid. As a result, paperboard is better suited to a variety of packaged products.  About 70 percent of paperboard packaging is used to protect food and other consumer goods.

How is paperboard made?
Paperboard is made by pressing layers of paper or paper pulp together to make a stiff board. This board is then coated if needed and printed for product identification and marketing.  After the paperboard is made, it is then sent to a converting machine to be made into a variety of containers.

Among other things, paperboard is converted into packaging for crackers and cookies, cereals, juice, and frozen foods, as well as laundry detergent, cosmetics, and personal hygiene products.

Paperboard may be made from bleached, recycled, or unbleached fiber.

Bleached Paperboard
Bleached paperboard is made from 100 percent virgin solid bleached sulfate pulp (SBS).  This type of paperboard is most often used in manufacturing cartons and boxes for milk and juice, non-carbonated drinks, dairy products (ice cream and butter), meat products, fast food, and frozen foods, as well as cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, hardware, and toys.

Recycled Paperboard
Recycled paperboard is made from a combination of 100 percent recovered fiber, which may include newspaper, magazines, corrugated boxboard, paperboard folding cartons, and telephone books. One side of the paperboard may be gray in color.

Examples of this type of paperboard are cereal, cracker, pasta and other food packages, detergent boxes, and many toy and hardware boxes, as well as shoe and shirt boxes.  Recycled paperboard is also used to make tubes and cans.

Unbleached Paperboard
Unbleached paperboard is made from predominantly unbleached kraft fiber and may contain some recovered fiber. Examples of this type of paperboard are 6- and 12-pack beverage carrying cases and folding cartons.

Information from 100% Recycled Paperboard Alliance web site http://www.rpa100.com and Paper Recycling Coalition web site http://www.paperrecyclingcoalition.com.