coated paper carton recycle

In the modern packaging industry, coated paper cartons are widely used for food, medicine, cosmetics, and consumer electronics. These cartons usually consist of base paper (kraft or duplex board) combined with plastic film, wax, aluminum foil, or PE coating, giving them excellent moisture resistance and visual appeal. However, this very composite structure makes coated paper carton recycling a technical challenge.

To help paper mills efficiently recycle these difficult laminated materials, Anyang Machinery provides a one-stop coated paper carton pulping solution, integrating advanced sorting, pulping, plastic removal, and fiber recovery technologies.

What Is Coated Paper Carton?

Coated paper cartons refer to packaging materials that combine paperboard substrates with surface coatings for functionality or printability. 

Common types include: PE-coated kraft cartons (milk cartons, juice boxes), Wax-coated fruit packaging paper, Foil-lined cartons (ice cream, butter packaging), Laminated duplex board (pharmaceutical and cosmetic cartons). Among coated paper cartons, coated white board(CWB) is a type of paperboard with a white coated surface and typically a gray back. It features good stiffness, smooth surface finish, and excellent printability, making it ideal for premium packaging boxes such as pharmaceutical cartons, cosmetic boxes, and food packaging.

 

These cartons are often multi-layered and contain 10–30% non-paper components, including: Polyethylene (PE), Paraffin wax, Aluminum foil, Adhesives and lamination glues.

This complex structure prevents traditional pulping systems from fully recovering the fiber content and separating the coatings effectively.

Coated Paper is widely used in packaging boxes, premium gift boxes, and food cartons. However, coated paper carton recycle faces three major industry challenges:

✔ Difficult coating removal: PE lamination and clay coatings are tightly bonded to the fiber, making separation through traditional pulping methods ineffective.

✔ Complex adhesives: UV varnishes and water-based glues reduce pulp cleanliness and increase processing difficulty.

✔ Severe fiber damage: Intense mechanical processing results in more than 30% fiber length loss.

Our innovative recycling solution leverages specialized technologies to increase the recovery rate of coated paperboard to 88%. The resulting high-quality pulp can be widely used in high-grade gray board (whiteness ≥70%), food-grade molded packaging (FDA compliant) and specialty industrial paper (e.g., flame-retardant liners).

Why Recycle Coated Paper Cartons?

Coated paper recycling is increasingly important due to:

• Rising environmental regulations banning landfilling of composite packaging waste.
• Growing volume of coated carton waste from food delivery, cold-chain logistics, and retail.
• Demand for cost-effective, sustainable fiber sources for recycled board and packaging paper.

Advantages of recycling coated paper cartons

• Reduces landfill pressure and microplastic leakage.
• Recovers high-quality long fibers from kraft or duplex board base layers.
• Supports circular economy and ESG targets.
• Converts challenging waste into valuable pulp and fuel resources.

Anyang Machinery's One-Stop Coated Paper Carton Pulping Solution

With over 20 years of industry experience, Anyang Machinery has developed a tailored system for recycling coated paper, designed to maximize fiber recovery, reduce reject waste, and lower operating costs.

Applications of Recycled Coated Paper Carton Pulp

The recycled pulp from coated cartons can be used for: linerboard and corrugated core paper, recycled kraft paper, molded pulp products (egg trays, inner trays) and low-grade printing and writing paper.

With proper dispersion and screening, the pulp quality can meet the needs of both industrial and consumer paper markets.

 

Anyang Machinery: Your Reliable Recycling Partner

✅ 100+ successful waste paper pulping projects.

✅ Patented de-coating, screening, and dispersion technologies.

✅ Customized layout design and complete process integration.

✅ On-site installation and training service available worldwide.

✅ Certified export equipment and global project references (Southeast Asia, Middle East, South America).

Recycle coated paper cartons not only helps reduce environmental burden but also offers economic opportunities for fiber recovery. Whether your factory handles PE-coated milk cartons, wax-lined boxes, or foil-laminated packaging, Anyang Machinery can deliver a complete, efficient, and eco-friendly solution. Our solutions cover all types of coated packaging materials, from high-end white board to multi-layer laminated cartons.

Comparison Between Coated Paper and Coated Paper Carton

Definition and Structural Differences

Recycling and Processing Differences

Coated Paper has a relatively thin coating and is usually processed through deinking and washing to produce recycled cultural paper, printing paper, and similar products.

Coated Paper Cartons, on the other hand, feature a more complex multi-layer structure with thicker coatings. They may also include plastic films, PE lamination, waterproof layers, or metallic coatings, which pose greater challenges for recycling equipment. These materials are more suitable for producing recycled linerboard, packaging base paper, or molded pulp packaging products.

If you’re dealing with waste consumer packaging like food-grade color boxes, pharmaceutical cartons, or e-commerce white board boxes, the appropriate term is coated paper carton recycling.

If you’re handling white board trimmings, offcuts from manufacturing lines, or discarded printed CWB sheets, coated white board waste (CWB) is the more accurate term.

Technical Consultation: Get a customized solution and a copy of the Feasibility Report for Coated Paper Recycling.

Sample Testing: Submit 5kg of raw material and receive test results within 7 days.