Eco-Friendly Packaging Made with Eco-Friendly Paper: Creating Eco-Friendly Boxes

Are you preparing to produce packaging? If so, how about creating an eco-friendly package made with eco-friendly paper that is both environmentally responsible and harmless to people?
Around the world, many efforts are being made to protect the environment, which is rapidly being polluted and destroyed. One of the many areas receiving attention is eco-friendly packaging made with eco-friendly paper and other sustainable materials. Eco-friendly packaging is closer to us than you might think!
If you want to learn more about eco-friendly packaging, see What Is Eco-Friendly Packaging?

Designed by. The Dallas Company

The Start of Eco-Friendly Packaging: Eco-Friendly Paper!

Eco-friendly paper? Have you heard of it before? Just hearing the name may bring to mind rough, coarse paper, but there are actually many different kinds of eco-friendly paper. If you want to create eco-friendly boxes, take a look at the various options below and think about which kind of eco-friendly paper would suit your packaging best.

Eco-Friendly Paper for Eco-Friendly Packaging

An Eco-Friendly Material That Can Be Recycled and Reused: Recycled Paper

Recycled paper is a classic example of eco-friendly paper. As the name suggests, it is paper made by reprocessing paper through recycling. However, not all reprocessed paper qualifies as recycled paper; the reused paper content must be at least 40% for it to be considered recycled paper.

Material for eco-friendly box production: Kraft Board
Kraft Board has a texture different from regular paper and a natural, warm-toned color.

Designed by Agency Roy Studio

Kraft Board is one of the paper types included in recycled paper, and it is widely used for various eco-friendly packages and eco-friendly boxes, including folding cartons.

If you're looking for eco-friendly folding carton packaging design, see: Introduction to Custom Folding Cartons

Source: Lush Korea Facebook

Lush uses shipping boxes made from recycled paper, along with paper tape made with biodegradable Kraft Board and a starch-based adhesive, for its product deliveries. Did you know that sturdy, durable courier boxes can also be made from recycled paper?

If you need eco-friendly box packaging design, Packative

A Unique Eco-Friendly Packaging Material: Non-Wood Paper

Non-Wood Paper, as the name suggests, is paper made without using wood, instead blending other materials. It is produced by mixing materials such as sugarcane, bamboo, seaweed, and orange peels. Unlike the paper we usually know, its distinctive texture and color are part of its appeal.

Material for eco-friendly box production: Sugarcane Paper
This paper is made using bagasse, the fiber extracted from sugarcane, instead of wood pulp.

Source: Bscly

Sugarcane eco-friendly paper, one of the sustainable materials made from sugarcane, is a non-wood paper that can biodegrade naturally through microorganisms alone. Recently, a paper called Earthpack made from sugarcane has gained a lot of attention as a packaging paper. It can be used for a variety of packages and catalogs, and it also supports different printing methods and finishing processes, so it deserves to be called an eco-friendly paper that stands proudly alongside conventional paper.

Source: Primera Facebook

This is a biodegradable packaging design made by Primera using sugarcane. It’s amazing that such beautiful packaging can be created from sugarcane—eco-friendly packaging made with sugarcane seems likely to become widely loved before long.

If you're planning eco-friendly packaging for beauty products, this is a must-read: Creating Beauty Packaging

Eco-Friendly Material Made from Carefully Selected Wood: FSC Certified Paper

This is an eco-friendly paper where the key point is which forest the wood was harvested from when making the paper.

Material for eco-friendly box production: FSC Certified Paper
Paper certified under a forest certification system is FSC certified paper. This certification requires that every step—from forest production, which is the start of logging, to manufacturing, processing, and distribution—meets the standards of the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). Of course, forest certification can also be found not only on paper, but on wooden furniture as well.

Companies in Korea and abroad, including Market Kurly, Amorepacific, Starbucks, and McDonald's, are actively using FSC certified paper to create eco-friendly packaging that considers the environment. If you're planning a paper-based package design, why not use FSC certified paper—an eco-friendly paper that expresses a brand image emphasizing sustainability and a sense of social responsibility?

If you'd like to learn more about different paper boxes, see Packative's Learn About the Types of Paper Boxes

How Should We Recycle Paper Products?

Recycling Paper Products Properly

As mentioned earlier, paper is so deeply woven into our daily lives that it’s hard to imagine a world without it. But are you sorting and disposing of paper products correctly?!

Source: Photo by Michael Jin on Unsplash

Not all paper can be recycled. Of course, it would be best if all packaging were made with eco-friendly materials, but realistically that isn’t always possible. In that case, the important thing is to recycle as many paper products as possible by sorting them correctly so they can be fully recycled. Paper contaminated with food or oil that cannot be recycled, even though it is technically paper, should be disposed of as general waste in a designated trash bag. Paper or packaging boxes with vinyl, gold/silver foil coating, or waterproof coating are also difficult to recycle and should be thrown away as general waste.

On the other hand, representative recyclable paper items include books and newspapers.
For boxes that are commonly used, be sure to remove all tape and shipping labels before flattening them for disposal. In the case of books, remember to remove any non-paper materials such as springs before discarding them.

Start creating your own packaging with eco-friendly paper now at Packative.