Waste

 

Efficiency of material usage is vital for the bioeconomy and circular economy. We continually find alternative ways to reuse, recycle and recover to avoid the linear economy where products end their life cycle at landfill.

We focus on the end-of-life management of our products. We are a significant actor in the circular economy as one of the largest consumers of recovered fiber in North America, Europe as well as many of our countries in Latin America. Our packaging solutions help prevent waste, especially in food products’ supply chains, by protecting products from damage or spoilage. At the end of its life, paper-based packaging becomes a valuable raw material. Paper-based packaging has some of the highest recycling rates of packaging materials, supported by advanced recycling systems. 

Smurfit Westrock also participates in its product end-of-life management. Our 63 recycling depots collect recovered paper and paper-based packaging, returning it back to our paper mills where the fiber will be recycled. It is in our interest that the products are recycled back into the papermaking process. In addition, our packaging reduces its own impact by being ‘right-weighted’, using the minimum material necessary.