The Green Divide: Recycled Fiber Paper vs. Post-Consumer Recycled Fiber Paper

Most consumers who purchase sustainably made paper products will look for “recycled” somewhere on the packaging. After all, recycling is good, right? Yes! Perhaps you’ve seen “post-consumer recycled fiber” or “post-consumer waste” on a product and thought “isn’t that the same as recycled paper?” Recycled paper and post-consumer fiber recycled paper have similarities, but there are some important distinctions between the two.

Recycled Paper

When an item is made with “recycled paper” it can contain fiber from various sources but it usually refers to pre-consumer waste. During the manufacturing process, scraps and trimmings are gathered and repulped to make new paper. Typically, pre-consumer recycled paper has never left the supply chain outside of the papermaking industry. This keeps the scraps from ending up in the waste stream, using up leftovers is good!

Post-Consumer Recycled Fiber Paper

Post-consumer recycled fiber (PCRF), or post-consumer waste fiber (PCW), is made from items that were used in the world outside of the paper supply chain, such as newspapers, magazines, office paper, cardboard packaging, etc. They were then recycled creating post-consumer recycled fiber (PCRF). All those cereal boxes you put in your recycling bin could be making their way back into your house in the form of a notebook!

Choosing products with higher PCRF content actively supports recycling initiatives and reduces the demand for new raw materials (AKA, trees). Not only that, but the manufacturing of PCRF papers saves energy and resources:

Both pre-consumer and post-consumer recycled fiber papers contribute to sustainability and are a superior choice to paper made using virgin fiber, which requires the harvesting of trees. However, post-consumer recycled fiber paper does more to promote a closed-loop system and reduce the need for other precious resources, such as water and energy. The majority of New Leaf Paper Printing and Publishing products contain high PCRF and all of New Leaf Paper notebooks, journals, and Green Notes™ are made from 100% post-consumer recycled fiber, resulting in a more meaningful impact on the reduction of your environmental footprint. Not only are no trees harmed in the production of our products, but we also make a contribution to One Tree Planted for each product purchased which means you can use paper and save trees!

Would you like to learn more about how New Leaf Paper’s commitment to sustainability? Let our certifications and affiliations do the talking.