Is Wax Paper Recyclable

If you re planning to compost your wax paper after use then you might want to reconsider.

Is wax paper recyclable.

Soybean wax is an organic vegetable wax derived from soybean oil and is most often used in making candles. The paper in wax paper is a compostable material. Generally waxed paper is either coated with soybean based or paraffin based. Actually the paper that uses soybean oil based waxed paper is compostable.

Wax paper can also be safely printed on as the wax helps to protect the food stuffs from the ink seeping through. A wax paper can be made of either soybean wax or paraffin. The first typical questions that i often get is whether or not wax paper is compostable. Paraffin is composed of either vegetable oil or petroleum based.

Milk and juice cartons stickers and plastic laminated paper the kind of paper that wraps fast food hamburgers and the like. And you may know it is coated with non stick materials like silicon. You may know several of its forms as 1 2 and 4 plastic. Soybean wax is organic but it is a wax and is difficult for microbes to digest.

Unlike the lamination used on other boxes though the plastic in wax coated cardboard can t be cleanly separated from the paper underneath. Wax paper is a mixed bag. But if you simply have to use it to make those homemade biscuits or fluffy sugar cookies don t toss your wax paper into the trash after using it. Vegetable oil is organic and is okay for composting.

Wax paper also waxed paper or paraffin paper is paper that has been made moisture proof through the application of wax. According to information from montana state university extension wax paper will not decompose efficiently and you may find pieces of it left in the compostable pile. With all that being said the simple answer is no wax paper is not recyclable because it is coated with well wax. The wax is usually actually polyethylene a type of plastic that s widely used and widely recycled.

The wax is either soybean based or one of two kinds of paraffin. However you can reuse parchment paper several times and then ultimately compost it. Any paper that is stained with food or cooking oils are not recyclable so parchment paper is out. Other mixed paper products that can t be recycled are.

Again it is hard for the. Butcher paper or freezer paper is coated with plastic. And the same university s home and garden information center stated they would not recommend composting parchment paper. One of the biggest selling points for wax paper is that it s compostable and recyclable which is great for any company deli or restaurant trying to decrease their carbon footprint.

Wax paper is considered mixed paper because it is paper coated with wax.