Features Environment & Sustainability Paper
Report: U.S. paper recovery rate for recycling up over 2018

May 31, 2019 – The U.S. paper recovery rate for recycling reached a record of 68.1 per cent in 2018, according to new data from The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA). 

The paper recovery for recycling rate determines how much paper in the U.S. gets recycled into new products.

The number marks an increase from the 2017 rate of 65.9 per cent and 2016 rate of 67.2 per cent.

According to a blog post by Brian Hawkinson, executive director of recovered fibre at AF&PA, the rate is calculated using AF&PA data on the amount of recovered paper used to make new paper and paperboard by U.S. paper mills and U.S. Census Bureau data on net recovered paper exports.

That total is then compared to the amount of paper and paperboard used in the U.S. over the same time period. 

The U.S. industry’s goal is to exceed 70 per cent paper recovery for recycling by 2020.