Encourage Recycling with PPC's Recyclable Paperboard Package Logo!

Click on the above image to access the full-size logo. Authorized use of this logo is restricted to those who have signed and submitted the License Agreement downloadable from this web page. Scroll down for the link.

Consumers have increasing expectations for their brands to incorporate green business practices. In fact, in 2009, a study by The Hartman Group found that three out of four consumers believe that it is important (or very important) to purchase product or packaging that can be recycled.

Until now, the law has only allowed manufacturers to claim their packaging was composed of recycled materials. But in 2011, the  American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) confirmed that paperboard packaging was being collected for recycling in over 60% of all communities in the U.S., exceeding the “recyclable” threshold requirement established by the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Green Guides (for more info, visit www.paperrecycles.org/news/exec_summ_2010.html).

That means that for the first time, companies that package a product in paperboard can legally state that their packaging is “recyclable,” regardless of whether the package is composed of virgin or recycled paper.

In response to this great news, PPC designed a logo that can be printed on paperboard boxes to clearly indicate to consumers that the package can—and should be—recycled after use. The logo is FREE of charge, provided that one signs the licensing agreement below.

PPC recommends that the logo be printed in black or dark blue ink on the outside panel of the minor flaps of rigid boxes, folding cartons, and other paperboard packaging, or in any color on the outside of the carton.

However, the symbol should NOT be printed on corrugated packaging, which has its own symbol, or cartons that have direct “wet” food contact, such as with some pizza boxes, aseptic packaging, or milk cartons. Additionally, while almost every paperboard package has the ability to be recycled, not all municipalities can recycle specialty cartons (such as those that are foiled or windowed). So PPC suggests that your customer should be advised of this before printing the recyclable logo on cartons with such features.

The more visible the logo is on a package, the more that our growing base of eco-conscious consumers will purchase the product BECAUSE it is packaged in recyclable materials. But even if the logo is printed on a non-visible flap, once the package has been opened, the logo will still serve to remind consumers to “do the right thing” by properly recycling the package in one’s curbside recycling bin rather than discarding it with other waste destined for the landfill.