Celebrate The Holidays Sustainably This Year By Using A Plant-Based Renewable Resource: Paper

MCLEAN, Va., Dec. 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- To help Americans enjoy the holidays sustainably, make planet-friendly choices, and be more informed on the benefits of choosing paper and paper-based products, the Paper and Packaging Board (P+PB) has released a new guide, "Celebrate the Holidays Sustainably with Paper". The guide provides easy, practical ways to recycle and reuse paper and paper packaging, as well as educational insights around why choosing paper contributes to the growth and health of U.S. forests.

"Choosing paper and paper packaging is one easy step anyone can take towards a more sustainable future because paper products are recyclable and are sourced from a renewable resource – trees," said Kingsley Shannon, Executive Vice President, Segment President - Fine Paper & Packaging Division at Neenah and member of P+PB's Board of Directors.

To help encourage consumers to recycle more and keep paper out of landfills, P+PB's holiday guide provides these tips to incorporate sustainable practices into holiday festivities:

1. Turn a shipping box into a holiday recycling bin. Boxes from online delivery orders can be transformed into their own waste and recycling bins, giving a full life cycle to every paper piece involved in a gift order. Place them strategically around the house to encourage recycling.
2. Send guests home with paper containers for the holidays. Paper to-go containers (and other products such as paper baking pans and paper cake molds) are all made from a renewable source.
3. Celebrate reading, writing, puzzling and doodling. Gift versatile and sustainable paper-based gifts, like books, board games, puzzles or journals for friends and family.
4. Turn cardboard boxes into game boards, treasure boxes, a kid's fort and more. Shipping appliance boxes can be a better present than the gifts that come inside when you turn them into hideaways, racing cars or fun, personalized DIY game boards. Protect gifts and ornaments with a soft cushion of paper. Cushion gifts that are fragile or being shipped by using festive paper-based filler options like tissue paper, crinkle paper or kraft paper.
5. Upcycle all the way. Turn cardboard into thoughtful, sustainable gifts for friends and loved ones. Gifts can include an advent calendar, pet bed, drawer organizer, a wine holder and more.
6. DIY decor and gifts. Make seed paper gift tags, paper ornaments or a collage of your homemade greeting cards from leftover gift wrapping.
7. Use high-gloss paper to make stylish gift wrap. Repurpose stacks of holiday catalogs and magazines with glossy paper into festive wrapping for gifts. Tape multiple pages together to make a gift stand out.
8. Personalize gifts with handwritten gift certificates. This is a great replacement to emailing store gift cards or e-greeting cards.

Choosing and recycling paper is not only critical for reducing holiday waste, but it is also a vital component of keeping U.S. forests growing and healthy. More than half the U.S. forest land is owned and managed by about 11 million private forest owners, who supply 90% of the wood to make forest products. The income landowners receive for trees grown on their land encourages them to maintain, manage, replant and renew this valuable resource instead of selling their land for development or for agricultural uses. In addition, paper mills across the country, use recycled paper and cardboard to make the essential products millions of people rely on every day. In 2020, nearly half of recycled paper went into making containerboard — the material used to make cardboard boxes.

Learn more at www.howlifeunfolds.com/holiday

About the Paper and Packaging Board
The Paper and Packaging Board promotes the use of paper products and paper-based packaging by highlighting how their sustainable nature and the industry's practices help contribute to a healthier planet. Forty-six U.S. manufacturers and importers collectively fund the national marketing campaign. www.paperfornature.com

SOURCE Paper and Packaging Board