Looking for mixed paper cardboard bales? Browse live listings from suppliers across the US.
Browse ListingsAbout Mixed Paper Cardboard Bales
A mixed paper bale is ISRI grade #54: a mixture of paper qualities not limited by fiber content, such as mail, magazines, catalogs, paperboard cartons, office paper and some corrugated. It is baled and sold by weight like OCC.
The difference from the other two grades is sorting. OCC is corrugated only and sorted office paper is office printing and writing paper; mixed paper is the stream a generator or recycling facility has not separated. The mixed fiber limits what a mill can make from it, mainly recycled paperboard and other recycled-content grades.
Mills and brokers set their own acceptance limits for mixed paper, so the spec on the purchase order matters more than the grade name. Food-soiled paper, wax-coated paper and plastic are the usual reasons for deductions or a rejected load.
What to Look For When Buying
- No food-soiled, wax-coated or plastic-laminated paper in the bale
- Dry bales with no mold
- Bales tight with wire ties intact
- Share of corrugated and boxboard in the mix
- Plastic film and other non-paper items kept out
Ideal For
- Recycled paperboard mills
- Brokers consolidating paper loads
- Generators without the space or staff to sort paper
Buying Tips
- Get the receiving mill's written acceptance limits before buying
- Ask where the paper comes from: office, retail and MRF mixed paper differ
- Inspect a broken-open bale, not only the outside faces
- Weigh loads at a certified scale
What buyers pay
$102.20average per unit, $64.86 to $146.57