Paperboard producers in Australia lifted their use of recovered paper to an all-time high in 2023-24. Local producers used 1.879 million tonnes of recovered paper for the year, a lift of 8.2% or 142,000 tonnes on the prior year. Source: IndustryEdge
Growth in local use of recovered paper was driven by a change in production away from printing and communication papers (like copy paper) and toward recycled corrugated packaging. Analysis for the 2024 Pulp & Paper Strategic Reviews identifies the large uplift in local recovered paper use as one of the major features of a year in which global and local fibre balances were changing and remained disrupted.
Higher prices for pulp, sustained high prices for recovered paper and inventory and supply chain disruptions all fed the global market, but saw local use of recovered paper power on, despite the potential allure of international opportunities and pricing.
As a result of the increased use of recovered fibre and a sharp (and directly linked) fall in use of virgin fibre pulp, Australia’s fibre balance shifted sharply to a record high for recovered paper, rising to 57.2% of total fibre used in the Australian paper and paperboard manufacturing industry.
Australia’s Proportional Recovered Paper Use: 2014 – 2024 (%)
Evidence that Australia continues to collect large volumes of recovered paper, for local use and export, continued in 2023-24, with total exports also rising. Exports returned to growth over the year, lifting over the 1.0 million tonne mark, after falling back the prior year.
Full details, charts and tables will be provided in the 2024 Pulp & Paper Strategic Reviews, due for release in mid-October. For more information www.industryedge.com.au
