Your Paper Waste Could Be Doing More for Your Business

Your paper waste may not only be taking up valuable space. It may also be leaving value on the table.

Cardboard, printing errors, old files and surplus paper can take up valuable space and complicate day-to-day operations. With the right recycling program, those materials can be collected, recovered, and put back to work.

Greif helps commercial and industrial businesses understand the recyclable materials they generate and build a collection plan around their operations. The result is a practical way to manage paper waste and help keep materials in use – which is good for your business and good for your sustainability goals.

Why Should You Look Closer at Your Paper Waste?

Changing a waste process can sound like extra work. A good recycling program should make the work easier. It can help you:

• Reclaim floor, storage, and receiving space
• Simplify how materials are sorted, stored, and collected
• Keep useful fiber out of landfills
• Support sustainability and circularity goals
• Build a program that can change as your needs change

The goal is not simply to recycle more. It is to build a clear and useful system for materials your team handles every day.

Paper Recovery Supports Business and Sustainability Goals

Paper recycling is an important part of the U.S. material economy. In 2025, 61–65% of paper available for recovery and 70–75% of cardboard available for recovery was recycled in the United States. Around 45 million tons of paper were recycled that year. 

While it’s easy to look at this as a success story, it also shows that there is still meaningful opportunity to recover more material. A National Renewable Energy Laboratory study estimated that 61.7 million metric tons of paper and cardboard were landfilled in the United States in 2019, representing approximately $4 billion in lost market value. 

Not every piece of paper has the same value or requires the same collection method. But a closer look at your waste stream can reveal opportunities to free up space, simplify material handling and keep more fiber in use.

A Collection Plan for You

With 13 recycling facilities across the U.S., that collect more than 3 million tons of paper each year, our work extends far beyond the pick-up. We work with customers to understand the materials they have, the volume they generate, where materials are stored and how often collection is needed. We can also evaluate equipment needs and the way material moves through a site.

From there, we help develop a recycling plan that fits your operations. We can help recover a wide range of commercial and industrial materials, including:

• Corrugated materials and containerboard
• Paperboard, pulp and Bristol board
• Printing and writing paper, including file folders
• Printed rolls and sheets
• Surplus paper and material from printing errors or production changes
• Damaged or aged paper products
• Certain specialty plastics and other materials

Accepted materials and services vary by location. If you are unsure whether an item can be recovered, Greif can help assess it.

See What a Waste Audit Can Uncover

You do not need to have every recycling detail figured out before starting the conversation. A Greif waste audit can help identify the materials in your waste and recycling streams, assess volume and collection needs, and identify options that fit your site.

Depending on the operation and location, services can include fiber analysis, baling support, roll-offs and compactors, scheduled or full-load collection, transportation, brokerage, salvage recovery and exporting.

Whether you operate a printing facility, warehouse, distribution center or manufacturing site, Greif can help develop a collection program around your materials, available space and daily workflow.

Talk with the Greif Recycling Team to find the right collection plan for your operation.