Recycling paper and cardboard correctly

Paper fibres can be recycled many times, but each cycle shortens them slightly. Keeping paper recycling clean and uncontaminated is what makes the process worthwhile — greasy or wet paper that ruins a batch achieves nothing.

Why paper and cardboard recycling matters

Paper comes from wood pulp, which means trees — and the energy and water needed to process them into usable material. Recycling paper uses considerably less energy and water than making paper from virgin wood pulp, and keeps trees in the ground. It also keeps paper and cardboard out of landfill, where it would break down anaerobically and release methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

The process works by pulping the collected paper with water to create a slurry, then screening out contaminants, pressing the fibres flat and drying them into new paper or cardboard. This is why contamination matters so much: grease from a pizza box coats the fibres and can't be removed during pulping, spoiling the batch. Food residue creates hygiene problems and odours. Wet paper mats together and can already be degrading before it reaches the mill.

Paper fibres do shorten each time they're recycled, so there's a natural limit — eventually paper fibres become too short to bind together into new paper. That's why reducing consumption and reusing paper products is always the best first step, with recycling as the backstop.

What's accepted — and what commonly isn't

Exactly what's collected varies between local authorities, so always check your specific scheme. That said, the following gives a reliable general picture:

Generally accepted in paper and cardboard recycling:

• Cardboard boxes — cereal boxes, shoe boxes, delivery boxes, toilet and kitchen roll tubes
• Corrugated cardboard (the wavy-middle type used in delivery boxes)
• Clean newspaper, magazines and supplements
• Envelopes — including windowed envelopes in many areas
• Office paper, copy paper, writing paper
• Books and paperbacks (without hard covers, or with them removed)
• Brown paper bags and wrapping paper (plain, non-foil, non-glitter)
• Paper packaging — egg boxes, moulded paper trays, paper bags

Commonly not accepted or requiring care:

• Greasy or food-soiled paper and card — takeaway boxes, greasy pizza boxes, paper bags with food residue. The clean parts may be salvageable (tear off and recycle the clean section); heavily soiled pieces go in general waste or compost.
• Waxed or plastic-coated cartons — Tetra Pak-style drink cartons (juice, milk, soup) have a plastic or foil lining and cannot go in standard paper recycling. Some areas have specialist carton collection — check locally.
• Laminated or plastic-coated paper — glossy windowed envelopes where the plastic window is integral, laminated cards, some coffee cups (which are lined with plastic film on the inside). Many coffee cup manufacturers now offer separate cup recycling at drop-off points.
• Tissues, kitchen roll and paper towels — once used, these are made from short fibres and are contaminated with food, grease or other material. They cannot be recycled; they can be composted.
• Thermal receipts — the smooth, slightly shiny paper used in most till and card-machine receipts often contains BPA or similar coating chemicals. They're generally not accepted in paper recycling. Go in general waste.
• Shredded paper — rules vary significantly. Some schemes accept shredded paper if it's contained in a sealed paper bag or envelope; others don't accept it because the tiny pieces jam sorting machinery and float out of lorries. Check your local guidance.
• Glittery or foil wrapping paper — if it sparkles or crinkles like foil, it's likely not recyclable. Do the scrunch test: scrunch it — if it springs back, it contains plastic. If it stays scrunched, it's usually plain paper and recyclable.
• Hardback book covers — the covers of hardback books usually have a different coating. Remove the cover and recycle the paper pages separately.

How to prepare cardboard boxes

Delivery and shopping boxes are among the most common items in the recycling bin. A little preparation makes them much easier to process.

1. Flatten the box. Collapsed boxes take up far less space — both in your bin and in the collection vehicle. Open out the box and press it flat. Nested flat boxes can be bundled together.
2. Remove plastic tape and polystyrene. Plastic parcel tape doesn't break down in the pulping process — pull off the main lengths before recycling. Small scraps of residue are less of an issue. Remove any polystyrene inserts, bubble wrap or plastic packaging inside and dispose of or recycle those separately.
3. Check for plastic or foam linings. Some food delivery and packaging boxes have plastic or foil linings. If the inside of the box is coated or shiny, it may not be recyclable as cardboard — check locally.
4. Tear off any soiled sections. If the box has a greasy or food-stained patch, tear that section off and compost it or put it in general waste. The clean parts can still go in recycling.
5. Keep it dry until collection day. Store flattened cardboard somewhere dry — a damp box begins to degrade and may be rejected by the mill.
6. Don't overfill your bin or box. Cardboard that blows out of an overfull recycling bin can end up as litter rather than recycling. If you have excess after an online shopping spree, save it for the next collection or take it to a recycling centre.

Why clean and dry matters so much

Paper recycling mills buy sorted material and expect it to meet quality standards. When a load arrives contaminated with grease, food waste or wet paper, it either has to be sorted again (at cost) or is downgraded — meaning it becomes a lower-quality product or has to go to landfill anyway.

Moisture is a particular problem: wet paper fibres start to break down immediately, and a soggy cardboard box can contaminate dry paper around it. If you leave recycling out before collection and it gets rained on, it's worth checking whether the paper elements are still suitable — heavily soaked paper may need to go in general waste, or can be composted.

Contamination from food is also significant. The oil or grease in a takeaway box coats the paper fibres and cannot be separated out in the recycling process. A small amount of contamination affects a disproportionately large amount of paper — which is why the advice "when in doubt, leave it out" is genuinely good for paper recycling specifically.

Reduce paper use first

Before paper reaches the recycling bin, it's worth asking whether you needed it at all. Reducing paper consumption is always better than recycling it because it avoids the energy, water and materials used in production in the first place.

• Go paperless with bills and statements. Most utility companies, banks and insurers offer electronic statements — switch and you immediately cut a regular stream of paper.
• Stop unwanted post. Opt out of direct mail marketing lists and junk mail delivery where services exist in your area — this varies by country but is worth investigating.
• Use both sides of paper before recycling it, and use the back of old documents as scrap paper.
• Borrow books and magazines from the library rather than buying.
• Choose products with minimal or no packaging where alternatives exist.

Composting paper and cardboard

Plain paper and cardboard are excellent "brown" materials for a compost heap or bin — they provide carbon to balance the nitrogen in food scraps and garden waste. This is a great option for paper you can't recycle: soiled paper bags, greasy fast-food packaging, tissues, kitchen roll, newspaper, torn-up egg boxes and plain cardboard.

• Tear or scrunch paper and card into smaller pieces before adding — this speeds up decomposition.
• Layer it with food scraps and green garden waste rather than adding all at once, which can create dry, slow-decomposing layers.
• Avoid adding heavily printed or glossy paper, foil-coated paper or paper with lots of bright-coloured inks to your compost.

Composting gives paper and card a productive second life, particularly for the pieces that can't go in your recycling bin. See our guide to composting at home for more.

The limits of paper recycling — and why reducing is first

Paper fibres degrade a little with each recycling cycle. Most paper can be recycled around five to seven times before the fibres become too short to form new paper. After that, the fibres are typically composted or used for lower-grade products.

This means recycling is important but not infinite. The hierarchy — reduce first, reuse where you can, then recycle — applies very clearly to paper. Choosing to receive fewer catalogues, reuse packaging, buy second-hand books and avoid single-use paper products will always have a greater effect than being meticulous about recycling paper you didn't need in the first place.

• Only recycle paper and cardboard that is clean and dry.
• Flatten all cardboard boxes and remove plastic tape before recycling.
• Tear off soiled sections of boxes — recycle the clean parts, compost or bin the rest.
• Check your local rules on shredded paper and receipts.
• Put tissues, kitchen roll and greasy packaging in compost or general waste.
• Go paperless for bills and statements to reduce paper use at source.
• Compost soiled paper and plain card rather than binning it.