With so many different paper types for when you’re buying packaging material might be getting a lot of you all confused, right? Well, this blog post will help clear out all that confusion! With information about the material used, and some of it’s basic properties, we’ve tried to clear up most of your questions about various paper types, so now you can make a well-informed choice for all your packaging needs!

Aug. 24, 2018

Different Type of Paper Quality

Updated On: Nov. 27, 2019

Paper Packaging has overgrown in recent years. The paper is 100% biodegradable as compared to the plastic. With the increase in awareness and the ban on plastics, the paper packaging is on the rise.
In the article, I have tried to explain the different type of paper available in the market along with their Pros. & Cons.

Corrugated paper is a material consisting of a fluted corrugated sheet and one or two flat liner boards. It is made on "flute lamination machines" or "corrugators" and is used in the manufacture of shipping boxes. The corrugated medium and liner board both are made of kraft board, a paperboard material usually over 0.01 inches (0.25 mm) thick. Corrugated fiberboard is sometimes called cardboard, although cardboard might be any heavy paper-pulp based board. Corrugated sheets are not food-grade. Hence lamination is required if it is to be used in the case of storing or packaging food items.

The corrugated paper is mostly used to make packing boxes & folding cartons, which are the secondary packaging for many products as it has better strength.

Corrugated sheet

Corrugated sheet

Corrugated fiberboard is a material consisting of a fluted corrugated sheet and one or two flat linerboards. It is made on "flute lamination machines" or "corrugators" and is used in the manufacture of shipping containers and corrugated boxes. The corrugated medium and linerboard board both are made of kraft containerboard, a paperboard material usually over 0.01 inches (0.25 mm) thick. Corrugated fiberboard is sometimes called cardboard, although cardboard might be any heavy paper-pulp based board. Corrugates sheets are not food-graded, hence lamination is required if it is to be used in the case of storing or packaging food items.

Butter Paper

It is sometimes called a sandwich paper and does not have a non-stick surface. So it should not be used for baking, but it can be used for packaging and wrapping fatty and moist food. Butter Paper is usually food-graded, so it is safe for wrapping up consumables.

The butter paper is cut down into sheets to wrap burgers and sandwiches. Or pouches are made to pack salads, bread, snacks, etc. The butter paper is an excellent flexible packaging solution. The butter paper is very cheap, have excellent heat resistance and should be used as the primary packaging.

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Cardboard

Cardboard

Cardboard is made up of a flute (made up of recycled paper), sandwiched between two liners. It is now very common for these liners to also be made up of a considerable proportion of recycled content, sourced from old cardboard or other sources of second-hand paper. Cardboard can vary significantly in thickness, and hence in strength and durability. It is not food-graded, therefore has to be laminated if it is used in packaging solutions for food items.

Virgin Paper

Virgin Paper refers to the paper made of fresh-cut trees that haven't been used for anything else before paper. The timber is cut, milled into pulp, and formed into brand new paper. Virgin paper can be made to be food-grade; hence it does not require lamination. It is of superior quality and often has a pleasant texture and odor.

The Virgin paper is generally food grade with excellent strength as compared to the recycled paper. The Virgin paper board is mostly food grade and better in strength but is expensive than the other variants mentioned in this list.

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ITC Board

ITC Board

ITC Board is the premium white paperboard we all know and love. ITC Boards are FSC-CoC (Forest Stewardship Council- Chain of Custody), thus being paperboards with FSC certificate which is a gold standard in wood certification for ethical and legal sourcing. The quality is superior, and the paper itself if food-graded, thus rendering it unnecessary to laminate the board while using it to store and wrap consumables. 

SBS Board

Solid bleached board (SBB) or solid bleached sulfate (SBS) is a type of paper board made purely from bleached chemical pulp and usually has a mineral or synthetic pigment coated surfaces in one or more layers. It is a medium density board with excellent printing properties for graphical and packaging end uses and is entirely white both inside and out. It can easily be cut, creased, hot foil stamped, and embossed. However, this board is not food-grade, hence has to be laminated if used for storing consumables.

The SBS Paper board has most of the features of virgin paper except is not food grade. The printing over the SBS board is slightly better as compared to the other paper type.

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Recycled Paper

Recycled Paper

The recycled paper is formed after processing the scrap paper which can no longer be used for the intended purpose. Good quality scrap paper is in short supply whereas low-quality scrap paper collected from households and industry is available in good proportions. Pieces of foreign matter can recognize this paper in the paper, including small pieces of foil and colored material effects the quality of the recycled paper.

The recycled paper is not food grade and should be laminated from inside if used to pack food items.

Duplex Paper

The duplex paper is made by infusing two layers of paper together. The exterior of the board is very often coated to make it more water-resistant and to give it a glossy look. The duplex paper is made food grade depending on the requirement. The duplex paper is used to manufacture printed mono cartons and is often used in pharmaceutical packaging.

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Why it's important to know about different types of Paper with the name?

With the right knowledge in hand, it's easier to get the right kind of paper packaging at the best price. It's not necessary for the manufacturer or the vendor will explain it to you at the time of ordering.

If you know about the paper packaging, you can ask for the quotation over two different types of paper and decide accordingly.

Here are a few of the examples where proper knowledge will help you.

The virgin food grade paper box is expensive for the budget you have, but the same box with the lamination is affordable and food grade.

You know the butter paper is used to wrap sandwiches and burgers then why go the expensive paper box. Wrap the food item inside the butter paper and put it inside the paper bag.

Looking for the french fries paper packaging but have budget constraints. Go for the cheap and best butter paper pouch instead of the duplex paper french fries pouch.

Where can I order Paper Packaging Products?

The Paper Packaging materials are available at the supermarkets, local vendors or with the manufacturers. The process is slightly tedious as you'll have to talk to different vendors or visit them for the order.

The paper packaging can be ordered online platforms here. It's easier to order online as they offer a wide range of paper packaging, you can compare prices, and pricing is the same as with the offline vendors.