How Paper and Cardboard Get Reprocessed
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Collected paper and cardboard are first sorted by grade, since different paper types, from newsprint to cardboard to office paper, contain different fibre lengths and qualities that suit different end uses. This sorted material is then mixed with water and mechanically pulped, breaking it back down into individual fibres.
The resulting pulp is screened to remove contaminants like plastic tape, staples and ink particles, then cleaned further before being pressed and dried into large rolls of new paper or cardboard. Each time paper is recycled, its fibres shorten slightly, which is why recycled paper is often blended with some fresh fibre.
Because of this gradual fibre shortening, paper cannot be recycled indefinitely in the way glass or metal can, though it typically supports several cycles of reuse before the fibres become too short and weak to hold together well, at which point that particular batch of material reaches the end of its practical life.