History of Recycling

The history of paper has its origin in recycling processes. Paper production stems from the reutilization of pieces of fabric rags, which later were converted to pulp to create other products.

In Brazil, it was the same: recycling started simultaneously with the beginning of paper production over 100 years ago. In addition to using discarded paper after consumption, industries imported pulp to supply its units.

From the 70’s on, the expansion of planted forests for industrial activities boosted the growth of the sector, what promoted consumption and, consequently, the availability of recyclable papers.

The upsurge of recycling as an accessible source of clean raw material, is directly related to economic issues. In past decades, the activity gained momentum due to social and environmental challenges within the concept of sustainability.

Through decades, paper recycling systems and their applications in new products evolved. In addition to the increased use of recycled paper for printing and writing, the development of production for wrapping and packaging purposes, based on improved technologies that diversify their use to meet consumption patterns, contributes to this process.