The past year has brought growth, challenges, and new opportunities for food and beverage carton recycling in California. With recent changes and new development in motion for early 2026 and beyond, we wanted to transparently address the current state of operations and share how we anticipate carton recycling will continue to grow.
California’s Truth in Labeling Law
When California passed SB 343, the state set strict criteria all packaging materials must meet in order to be identified as recyclable: 60% household recycling collection access and 60% of counties sorting the material into a defined recycled commodity stream.
When CalRecycle’s initial report came out, cartons were erroneously listed as not meeting both criteria. However, after considering more complete data, CalRecycle updated their data in August 2025 to include previously missing information, which showed carton sortation at 68% – beyond the 60% threshold required for recyclability designation in California.
Carton Sorting Paused in Sacramento
In early December 2025, a report was published that asserted cartons are contaminants when sorted into the recovered mixed paper commodity stream. Mixed paper is one of two recognized recycling streams for food and beverage cartons. For many years, paper mills have purchased and recycled mixed paper containing cartons.
However, out of an abundance of caution, the Sacramento Recycling and Transfer Station (SRTS)—the sorting facility identified in the report—decided to pause sorting cartons into mixed paper. When sharing this operational change with CalRecycle, SRTS stated that cartons are generally considered recyclable by paper mills but could potentially lead to rejection at ports in certain export markets.
It is important to note that no concern regarding paper mills’ ability or desire to recycle cartons as part of mixed paper was expressed by SRTS, CalRecycle, or any sorting facility or recycler.
Implications for SB 343 and SB 54
Regardless of recyclability implications, this temporary operational change at SRTS revised recognized statewide carton sortation from 68% to 53%, which meant cartons no longer met the threshold required by SB 343 (reminder: 60% household collection access + 60% sortation by county).
With new facilities sorting cartons for recycling, by the end of February 2026, cartons are expected to once again exceed the threshold for recyclability designation set by SB 343 – well in advance of when the law will be implemented on October 4, 2026. This means there is no need for brands to change how they identify cartons as recyclable nationally and in California.*
SB 343 defines what may be labeled as recyclable in California, but the criteria established by that law also influences how materials are categorized under SB 54, the law that established California’s packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR) program, which is scheduled to begin on January 1, 2027.
SB 54 requires CalRecycle to publish a list of what local jurisdictions and recycling facilities must recycle. This list is called the Covered Material Categories (CMC) List. Due to temporary changes shared above, cartons were not listed as recyclable on the CMC list published on December 31, 2025. The next regularly scheduled update of the CMC list is December 31, 2026.
Unfortunately, even though we anticipate cartons will once again meet the criteria for recyclability designation set by SB 343 in the coming weeks, the recent CMC list was published during a brief lapse in sortation and will likely not be updated to reflect anticipated growth through 2026. However, this has no bearing on carton recyclability labeling.
Looking Ahead
We anticipate this year carton recycling will grow to be larger than ever in California and across the United States. With more cartons being recovered and new recyclers opening to meet the expanding market, this year is set to be one of the most critical years for our work since the Carton Council was founded.
Thank you for your continued support of carton recycling. If you ever have any questions regarding carton recycling or our work, please feel free to contact us directly at any time.
* Please note that this is only the Carton Council’s interpretation of regulations. Neither this nor any other statement in this article should be treated as legal advice. Please consult with your legal counsel.