Curious about Kraft paper? Well, it is a popular choice as cost-effective and durable packaging paper, shipping material, and for art, as it's eco-friendly. Also known as brown paper, the material comes from wood pulp, which is the reason for its high strength and tear resistance. It is highly considered in the packaging and shipping industries because plastic pollutes nature and breaks sustainability regulations. Whereas the Kraft paper can be used without such issues and is durable enough to even accommodate heavy-duty packages. This packaging material finds application in the retail sector to make shopping bags, gift wraps, and art & craft items. Let’s discuss more about it in detail to know about its types, applications, benefits, production process, and popular alternatives.
What is Kraft Paper?
Kraft paper, where the word Kraft means strong in German, is a durable packaging paper mainly used for shipping and handling of products. People use it as a gift wrap, shopping bag, book covers, protective layers to ship parcels, food packing, and more. It comes from the wood pulp, which is why it is brown in color and is available in colored brown paper on the market. Due to its tear-resistant property, Kraft paper and board are used in making art and craft objects. Moreover, for many companies, it works best as a branded packaging solution available in different color options and shades.
Key Benefits of Kraft Paper
Here are the major benefits or reasons for using kraft paper
Eco-Friendly
Kraft paper offers many benefits to use as a packaging material in almost every industry. However, a major reason to use it is that it is made from wood pulp and is eco-friendly, leaving a lower carbon footprint behind. It is 100% compostable and recyclable and is actually recycled for making durable packaging materials for many products. Using this as the primary packaging material, the brand complies with government regulations.
High Strength and Tear-Resistant
Brown kraft paper is highly durable and tear resistant as it is made of pure wood pulp. The packaging materials made from kraft paper cannot be damaged so easily. Their manufacturing process is specifically designed to produce kraft paper with high tensile strength so that it can store and hold heavy and sharp objects for transit.
Ideal for Branding and Creatives
Kraft paper is popular among brands to produce branded promotional materials, shopping bags, and wrapping papers. It is because it attracts every type of consumer, including eco-conscious buyers, as it is natural. Modern consumers like its rustic and minimalist appeal in the form of packaging materials.
Cost Saving
Kraft paper is highly cost-saving as its manufacturing process is simple, and it has a low upfront cost. Further, it is a very accessible packaging material that offers a low per-unit packaging price with durability and high tensile strength.
What are the Different Types of Kraft Paper?
Here are the major types of kraft paper mainly used:
Natural or Virgin Kraft Paper (Brown Kraft Paper)
Virgin Kraft paper comes completely out of Unbleached virgin wood pulp. This packaging paper has the highest level of strength and tear resistance for shipping purposes and heavy-duty industrial bags.
Bleached Kraft Paper (White Kraft Paper)
These kraft papers are bleached using chemicals to get a white form and crisp finish. During the process, the tensile strength of this paper lowers a bit, but it offers a smooth surface finish, best for premium printing retail packaging, and high-quality printing jobs.
Recycled Kraft Paper
It is a brown kraft paper that is made entirely of recycled materials. The tensile strength of this material is not comparable to virgin kraft paper, but it can be used as an additional packaging material for void filling and light wrapping, as it is nature friendly.
Sack Kraft Paper
These types of paper material are used for producing porous kraft paper, which has incredible strength and treats resistance for storing and transporting heavy-duty materials. These types of packaging are used to craft sacks that store and ship products like cement, flour, animal feed, and more.
Colored or Printed Kraft Paper
These types of kraft papers are dyed in vibrant colors or printed with different designs as per the brand's requests for branding and marketing. They especially demand this type of packaging paper for crafting promotional items, shopping bags, or wrappings.
Major Applications of Kraft Paper
Kraft paper is a versatile packaging material used for many purposes in different industries. Let’s explore them.
Packaging Goods
Most commonly, the paper is used as a packaging material to wrap a product or create durable boxes to place them inside for protection. It is used for storing and shipping objects because of its high strength and tear-resistant properties.
Protecting Pallets
In the shipping industry, kraft paper is used during the process of palletizing. It is placed between the different boxes or objects as a protective layer so that they don’t slip and break during loading, unloading, and shipping.
Filling Empty Spaces
Low-quality or recycled kraft paper is used as a filling material for packing expensive and delicate products in boxes. They fill the empty space and restrict the movement of the product to prevent damage during transit.
Conclusion
Kraft paper or brown paper is a high-strength and eco-friendly packaging material. It is both affordable and durable to store and ship different weights, sizes, and materials of products. The paper can be used as primary or secondary packaging, including for filling the voids inside boxes. It can easily and safely handle heavy-duty industrial objects during shipping as it is made from high-quality wood pulp. Moreover, this packaging material is 100% biodegradable and compostable, which benefits nature and reduces dependence on plastic.
