Atlanta, Georgia based Graphic Packaging International has announced the start-up of its recycled paperboard mill in Waco, Texas—a nearly $1 billion project originally announced in February 2023.
The mill produced its first commercially saleable roll of recycled paperboard October 24, with CEO Michael Doss saying that was significantly earlier than planned.
The Waco site is expected to reach full production in the next 12-18 months, and Doss said the company has developed a plan to source recovered fiber from its packaging facilities for the Waco mill.
“By closing the loop between our own manufacturing system scrap and Waco’s recovered fiber sourcing, we dramatically reduce overall system waste while simultaneously improving our production economics,” says Doss. And with the inclusion of paper cups in the Recycled Materials Association’s recently updated guidelines, a key strategic investment we made at Waco looks even better.”
The Waco mill has the capability to process up to 15 million paper cups per day, and estimates indicate the facility also will consume about 20,000 tons per month of old corrugated containers. Doss estimates the Waco mill will add 75,000 tons more to the total recycled paperboard market capacity than the industry had at the start of 2025.
