FV Recycling and Mid America Paper Recycling’s new digital Waste Audit gives corrugated manufacturers a quick, structured way to benchmark recycling performance, identify improvement opportunities, and receive personalized recommendations.
Mid America Paper Recycling, now part of FV Recycling, will introduce a new digital Waste Audit at Corrugated Week 2026, September 28-30 in Fort Worth, Texas. The new free online assessment gives corrugated manufacturers a faster, more structured way to evaluate their recycling programs and identify opportunities for revenue improvement and profit optimization.
Visitors to booth 543 can learn how the new online assessment evaluates recycling operations across key areas including safety, financial performance, program management, operations and logistics, and equipment and infrastructure. Once completed, the Waste Audit provides an overall recycling maturity score, category-by-category performance ratings, and prioritized recommendations designed to help companies identify opportunities to improve material recovery, operating efficiency, reporting and financial performance.
“Most corrugated plants already have recycling programs in place, but that doesn’t necessarily mean those programs are fully optimized,” said Jason Dunn, SVP of Business Development at the combined FV Recycling and Mid America Paper Recycling organization. “The new free digital Waste Audit gives plant leaders a practical way to step back, benchmark where they are today, and identify specific areas that deserve a closer look.”
The assessment measures performance against established recycling practices and places each organization along a five-stage maturity scale ranging from Fledgling to Dynamo. Rather than simply generating a score, the resulting report identifies strengths and improvement opportunities and recommends specific actions based on the company’s responses.
Those recommendations can address issues such as material flow, collection practices, contamination, recycling equipment, employee training, safety, sustainability reporting, vendor performance and tracking the financial return of a recycling program. Each recommendation also identifies its relative priority and potential impact, providing box plant managers with what Dunn says is a more actionable roadmap for improving their operations.
“The new Waste Audit reflects the broader approach FV Recycling and Mid America Paper Recycling bring to corrugated and packaging customers,” he explained. “It looks beyond material pickup to examine how recyclable materials are managed throughout the operation.”
For plants generating significant volumes of OCC, DLK, and other recovered paper grades, factors such as material segregation, bale quality, equipment performance, freight, mill demand and load configuration can all influence the net value ultimately realized from the recycling program.
“Recycling is an operating discipline just like any other part of the plant,” said Don Gaines of Mid America Paper Recycling. “Markets change, equipment changes and production needs change. Even a program that has been in place for years can benefit from taking a fresh look at how materials are being handled and where additional value may be available.”
Corrugated Week also comes during a milestone year for Mid America Paper Recycling, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. Founded in Chicago in 1926, Mid America has built its business around recovered-fiber market expertise, strong mill relationships, and hands-on support for corrugated, packaging and manufacturing operations.
Now part of FV Recycling, Mid America combines that century of industry experience and established relationships with FV’s broader recycling, logistics and operational capabilities. Together, the companies help customers improve material quality, keep fiber moving efficiently, and make recycling programs more measurable and productive.
Attendees can visit with FV Recycling and Mid America Paper Recycling representatives at booth 543 to see the new free digital Waste Audit, discuss their current recycling operations, and learn where additional opportunities may exist.
Visit the website for more info.