Last week, in the first of our two-part series, we shared some information about paper recycling in the MMBC residential packaging and printed paper recycling program. This week we conclude the series with information about paper packaging.
Paper packaging largely consists of boxes, such as those used for shoes, cereal, toothpaste, pizza, and crackers. These can be added to your paper recycling after the contents and any liners have been removed. If you have large boxes—say after getting a new television set—please follow your collector’s instructions about how to bundle them so they easily fit in the collection truck.
Paper packaging also includes moulded paper drink trays, baskets for berries, and egg cartons, and paper-based garden pots. If you tear these, you can see the layers of paper that have been used to manufacture the packaging.
Paper bags are also accepted. Examples of these include the bags you receive with your prescription from the pharmacy, paper grocery bags, bags for flour or sugar. Paper bags lined with plastic are not accepted.
Paper bags with foil linings are not accepted. The paper and the foil cannot be separated, and together they are incompatible in the recycling process. For similar reasons, boxes with foil linings are not accepted.
Please do not include baking papers, for example parchment paper and waxed paper. These are multi-layered papers, and the layers cannot be separated in the recycling process.
Paper take-out beverage cups, milk cartons, soup cartons, and paper-based frozen dessert containers are all accepted in the MMBC program, however, instead of adding these to paper recycling, we encourage residents to include them with container recycling. This prevents any liquids left in the packaging from spoiling the papers.
Have you downloaded our Recycle it Right game for iPad? Test your recycling sorting knowledge and challenge your friends.