Product Code Database
A paper bag is a bag made of paper, usually kraft paper. Paper bags can be made either with virgin or recycled fibres to meet customers' demands. Paper bags are commonly used as shopping bag and for packaging of some consumer goods. They carry a wide range of products from groceries, glass bottles, clothing, books, toiletries, electronics and various other goods and can also function as means of transport in day-to-day activities.
In 1853, James Baldwin, papermaker of Birmingham and Kings Norton in England, was granted a patent for apparatus to make square-bottomed paper bags. Thereafter he used an image of a flat-bottomed bag as his business logo.Letters Patent No 2190, dated 22 September 1853 and sealed 22 March 1854, to James Baldwin of Birmingham in the County of Warwick, Paper Manufacturer, for the Invention of “Improvements in the Making of Paper Bags.”
In 1871, inventor Margaret E. Knight designed a machine that could create flat-bottomed paper bags, which could carry more than the previous envelope-style design.
In 1883, Charles Stilwell patented a machine that made square-bottom paper bags with pleated sides, making them easier to fold and store.Stilwell, Charles B., "Paper bag" , U.S. patent no. 405,616 (issued: 18 June 1889). This style of bag came to be known as the S.O.S., or "Self-Opening Sack".
In 1912, Walter Deubener, a grocer in Saint Paul, Minnesota, used cord to reinforce paper bags and add carrying handles. These "Deubener Shopping Bags" could carry up to 75 pounds (34 kg) at a time, and became quite popular, selling over a million bags a year by 1915. Paper bags with handles later became the standard for department stores, and were often printed with the store's logo or brand colors.
were introduced in the 1970s, and thanks to their lower cost, eventually replaced paper bags as the bag of choice for grocery stores. With the trend towards phasing out lightweight plastic bags, though, some grocers and shoppers have switched back to paper bags.
In 2015, the world's largest paper shopping bag was made in the UK by Paper Bag Co and recorded by Guinness World Records. Also in 2015: The European Union adopted directive (EU) 2015/720, that requires a reduction in the consumption of single use plastic bags per person to 90 by 2019 and to 40 by 2025.Directive (EU) 2015/720 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2015 amending Directive 94/62/EC as regards reducing the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags
In 2018, the “European Paper Bag Day” was established by the platform The Paper Bag, an association of the leading European kraft paper manufacturers and producers of paper bags. The annual action day takes place on 18 October and aims to raise awareness among consumers about paper carrier bags as a sustainable packaging solution. It was launched to encourage more people to act responsibly and use, reuse and recycle paper bags. With different activities on local level, the association wants to open a dialogue with consumers and give them revealing insights about paper packaging.The Paper Bag. “European Paper Bag Day”.
In April 2019, the European Union adopted Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment.DIRECTIVE (EU) 2019/904 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 5 June 2019on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment
Multi-wall paper sacks are designed to provide strong product protection, with high elasticity and high tear resistance, for products with high demands for safety and durability. Information such as instructions, logos or trademarks can be printed on the resistant outer surface. or different dispersions are sometimes used as inner layers or coatings to provide a barrier against moisture, water vapour, grease, oxygen, odours and bacteria. Paper sacks are produced on paper sack converting machines consisting of tuber and a bottomer.
There are two basic designs of bags: open-mouth bags and valve bags. An open-mouth bag is a tube of paper plies with the bottom end sealed. The bag is filled through the open mouth and then closed by stitching, adhesive, or tape. Valve sacks have both ends closed and are filled through a valve. A typical example of a valve bag is the cement sack.
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One of the natural and unique characteristics of sack kraft paper is its porosity. Acting as a filter material, high-porosity paper enables the air used in the filling process for dry powdery goods to escape very quickly, without the need for air extraction systems. This makes it possible to achieve filling speeds of up to 3.5 sec for a 25 kg sack.
Thanks to different paper sack constructions with glue, barrier, layer or surface concepts, paper sacks can also be moisture resistant. All moisture-proof sacks are compatible with regular paper sack filling machines. In especially adverse weather conditions, an extremely thin bioplastic, plastic or other adequate barrier film can be part of the surface layer in the paper sack construction for particularly effective protection.
Added barrier film liners can also extend the shelf life in a range of different conditions. There are many different sack constructions especially designed to offer a good shelf life when paper sacks are exposed to extreme conditions such as damp, moisture, light, oxygen or carbon dioxide. Also, the correct storage and handling of paper sacks along the supply chain extends their shelf life.
Paper sacks also provide a medium for promotional messages and sophisticated printing designs. Due to their natural, non-slippery texture and their construction, paper sacks can safely be handled, stacked, palletized and stored. User-friendly opening systems, such as a tear-open flap, allow quick and clean access to the contents without the use of tools such as knives.
Paper bags can be made to withstand more pressure or weight than plastic bags do.
The production process slightly varies depending on the type of sack. All paper sacks are tailor-made and cater to the specific area of usage, product type and transportation needs.
Valve sacks have a valve for filling and sealing in a corner of the paper sack. The valve system in a corner of the sack allows high-speed filling with automatic closing when the sack is filled to its capacity. This type of sack is especially used to pack powdered goods such as cement, flour and cocoa.
The pinch bottom sack is a usually leak-proof open mouth sack, used for products such as chemicals or foodstuffs which must be protected during transport and storage.
An SOS sack has a high stability and makes quick open mouth filling easy, and can also be reclosed. SOS sacks are used for granulated products such as food products or animal feed. They have a rectangular bottom and high stability faculties and can also be used as a compost sack or refuse sack. Pasted open mouth sacks can also be SOS sacks and differentiate themselves due to their glued bottom area, which increases their strength.
Paper sacks are available in different sizes and can carry loads up to 50 kg. The capacity is variable, and paper sacks also come in a variety of calipers, basis weights, and treatments.
Paper sacks for food require specific quality assurance and hygiene management along the entire supply chain, as they must be in line with several national and international standards regarding the safety and hygiene of the stored food products. All materials of the sack need to be taken into account to fulfil these requirements. In Europe, there are several mandatory procedures to collect, evaluate and document all necessary information. Under certain conditions, migration testing and the issuing of compliance documents is demanded. Most of those requirements concern the conditions of use, storage time and temperature. Information on these aspects from all suppliers is a prerequisite.
Most paper bags that are produced in Europe are made from cellulose fibres that are sourced from sustainably managed European forests. They are extracted from tree thinning and from process waste from the sawn timber industry. Sustainable forest management maintains biodiversity and ecosystems and provides a habitat for wildlife, recreational areas and jobs. This sustainable forest management is proven in the FSC® or PEFC™ certifications of paper products. Consumers can look for the FSC and PEFC labels on their paper bags to make sure they are made from sustainably sourced fibres.
As a wood product, paper continues to store carbon throughout its lifetime. This carbon sequestration time is extended when the paper is recycled, because the carbon remains in the cellulose fibres.
Paper bags can be used several times. Paper bag manufacturers recommend reusing paper carrier bags as often as possible in order to further decrease the environmental impact.
The carbon footprint of an average European paper sack is analysed since 2007. The studies have shown continuous improvement, as the carbon impact of paper sacks has been reduced by 28% in eleven years between 2007 and 2018. In 2018, the carbon footprint of an average European paper sack from cradle-to-gate is 85g CO2e per sack. If the biogenic emissions and biogenic removals were included in the analysis, it would amount to -35g CO2e per sack, which means that paper sacks have a positive impact on the environment.
Plastic or water-resistant coatings or layers make recycling more difficult.R. McKinney: Technology of Paper Recycling, 1995, p. 351. ISBN 9780751400175 Paper bag recycling is done through the re-pulping of the paper recycling and pressing into the required shapes.
The first form of "brown bagging" refers to bringing food from home (regardless of the actual container used) instead of buying a meal at or near one's destination. Most often, it means bringing a packed lunch to school or work. For example, a 1983 study reported that America had 60 million "brown baggers."
Individuals may choose to brown bag to save money; if options to buy food are limited or absent; or to accommodate medical, religious, or lifestyle dietary requirements (e.g. low-fat or low-salt, kosher or halal, vegetarian or vegan). Additionally, while "a substantial minority of brown baggers have access to microwave ovens or refrigerators," those who do not need to ensure their food can stay fresh until mealtime without refrigeration (possibly bringing their own, via ice packs and ), and be ready to eat without being reheated.
The noun form of the term included in the Merriam-Webster dictionary in 1950 refers to use of a paper bag instead of a lunch box. William Safire traces this to an article in Time magazine.
The second form of "brown bagging" involves drinking alcohol in places where it is not legal to do so (such as a public park, or a venue without a liquor license) while using a brown paper bag (or a black plastic bag, or other suitably opaque covering) to conceal the bottle or can. While it's usually an open secret that a drink handled like this almost always contains alcohol (as there's little reason to hide other drinks), depending on local laws, this can minimize the chance of legal consequences. If there's no law against generally keeping open containers in bags, then doing so does not, in and of itself, give police probable cause to search a bag for alcohol.
In 1985, the New York State Liquor Authority pushed for legislation (informally referred to as "the anti-brown-bag law") to prevent patrons from bringing alcoholic beverages into food establishments that do not have a liquor license. New York City Mayor Ed Koch, having been "arrested" for doing so months earlier, denounced the effort.
About a third of the brown baggers are schoolchildren.
The "Brown Paper Bag Test" formed part of a colorist discriminatory practice in African-American history, in which an individual's skin tone was compared to the color of a brown paper bag.
Paper bags are occasionally worn over the head as symbol of embarrassment, for example, the Canadian comedian The Unknown Comic.
EUROSAC is the European Federation of multiwall paper sack manufacturers. It was created in 1952 and is headquartered in Paris. It represents over 75% of European paper sack manufacturers. Its members operate in 20 different countries. Sack manufacturers from all continents and bag manufacturers also contribute to the federation as corresponding members, and more than 20 suppliers (paper, film, machine or glue manufacturers) are registered as associate members.
CEPI Eurokraft is the European Association for producers of sack kraft paper for the paper sack industry and kraft paper for the packaging industry. It was established in the 1930s to represent the Swedish, Norwegian and Finnish kraft paper manufacturers and now has eleven member companies in twelve countries.
Anti-brown-bag law in New York, USA
In 1967, it was stated that "brown-bagging is the genteel disguise ... by a patron to furnish his own liquor when he dines at the local restaurant".
Brown Bag Report
The advertising agent who, prior to the Marlboro Man, developed ads for the product as a filtered "feminine brand""Burnett repositioned Marlboro cigarettes from a feminine brand to one that shouted masculinity" in 1981 developed "The Brown-Bag Report" with funding from Swift, Carnation, General Mills and American Can.
Symbolism
While in the United States the lunch box or lunch pail has been used as a symbol of the working class, Safire wrote: "In the metaphor of the modern worker, the brown bag has replaced the lunch pail."
Associations
The platform The Paper Bag consists of leading European paper manufacturers and producers of paper bags. It was created in 2017 to represent the interests of the European paper bag industry and to promote the advantages of paper packaging. The Paper Bag is steered by the organisations CEPI Eurokraft and EUROSAC.
Other uses
Paper bags are commonly used for carrying items. However, they have been used for other purposes. In 1911, the English chef Nicolas Soyer wrote a cookbook, Paper-Bag Cookery, about how to use clean, odorless paper bags for cooking, as an extension of the en papillote technique and an alternative to pots and pans.
Further reading
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