The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA), Washington, D.C., USA, reports that a record 67.2%t of paper consumed in the U.S. was recovered for recycling in 2016. U.S. paper recovery rate statistics are available online.

"The voluntary, market-driven recovery system, the millions of Americans who recycle every day, and industry efforts to inform consumers about the importance of paper recycling continue to enable a high U.S. paper recovery rate," said AF&PA President and CEO Donna Harman.

"Paper recovery for recycling helps extend the useful life of paper and paper-based packaging products, making it an integral part of our industry’s sustainability story," said AF&PA Board Chair and Clearwater Paper Corp. President and CEO Linda Massman.

The annual paper recovery rate has doubled since 1990 and U.S. paper recovery has met or exceeded 63% for the past eight years. The industry has a goal to exceed 70% paper recovery for recycling by 2020 as part of its Better Practices, Better Planet 2020 http://sustainability.afandpa.org/ sustainability initiative.

More information about paper recycling, including statistics and other resources, is available online.