Wal-Mart has teamed with Pratt Industries to recycle
corrugated waste from its stores into recycled boxes for
its private-label pizza line. See video :
WAL-MART
Closes the loop

"We've totally and literally closed the loop using a
retailer's own boxes to go through our paper mill and
then to make corrugated boxes out of those same boxes
again," said Myles Cohen, Pratt's Recycling Division
President. "Quite frankly, the program is
groundbreaking. It's the future."
The genesis of the project began when Pratt was
approached to help Wal-Mart improve the sustainability
of its pizza boxes. Wal-Mart's Director of Packaging
Procurement - Private Brands, Chet Rutledge, had a
vision to create a closed-loop operation utilizing old
corrugated containers (OCC) from their stores. After
receipt of the OCC, Pratt manufactures 100% Recycled
Containerboard which is then converted at our
Valparaiso, IN box plant into pizza boxes used to
package pizzas prepared by Walmart's partner, Great
Kitchens of Illinois.
Rutledge had this to say about the initiative,
"Innovation can often be found in the simplest of
things. We encourage our supply partners to look for
creative solutions that are efficient and effective.
Being sustainable doesn't have to be complicated. It's
as simple as looking for opportunities to be more
efficient in all stages of the supply chain. By working
together with our supply partners we can deliver the
most cost effective products for our customers."
Wal-Mart estimates this measure alone will save 8600
tons of waste from landfills. Additionally, it will
reduce the need to consume the equivalent of 40 million
gallons of water and 125,000 trees. Wal-Mart wants to
reduce packaging in its global supply chain by 5 percent
by 2013.