COLORED PAPERS: Do deep colors affect the recyclability of paper?
Fedrigoni has set the goal for 2030 to have 100% of its special paper families with a verified level of recyclability according to the Aticelca 501/19 method, one of the most rigorous and in line with current regulations. If the paper product falls into one of the four recyclability classes (A+, A, B, C), it means that it can be collected in paper and recycled in paper mills, and the company is authorized to use the “Recyclable with paper – Aticelca® 501” mark for commercial purposes. More intense colors can generate a drop in recylability class (for example, bringing the classification from an A+ level to an A level if going from a light color to a more intense one), limit the use of paper, or require a greater use of colors or coatings to cover intensely colored fibers. In addition, the recycling of differently colored and deep papers leads to the creation of gray recycled papers, with optical inhomogeneity; these papers can only be used for limited applications (for example, inside a box). At Fedrigoni, we recover our colored paper waste through a color flow (from white to black) to maximize its optical homogeneity.