Pratt Industries is changing the way America moves. With 100% recycled – and recyclable – boxes, as well as new innovations that avoid or reduce plastic, they are diverting millions of pounds of material from landfills every year.

The circular economy is a significant focus for The Home Depot, and our moving boxes are an ideal example of how a product can be industry-leading in quality while still being environmentally preferred.

An average of 28 million Americans moved each year between 2018 and 2022, and last year alone, nearly 26 million moved, which explains why The Home Depot’s Moving Supplies aisle is such a popular place. Cardboard moving boxes are supporting the circular economy in big ways, and Pratt Industries is changing the corrugated cardboard game.

As the world’s largest manufacturer of 100% recycled packaging, Pratt has been making packaging for over 30 years, and they make our Home Depot moving boxes using 100% post-consumer recycled materials. The selection of box size and strength options is handy, but there’s much more to the story.  Pratt moving boxes that are available in all Home Depot stores are made from 100% recovered fiber that is collected from residential and business recycling programs, including cardboard from our own stores and distribution centers. The 544 million pounds of cardboard we recycled last year alone all went to Pratt for recycling back into our moving boxes. And more than 93% of the old, corrugated container (cardboard) packaging consumed in the U.S. was recovered for recycling in 2022, helping to make paper the most recovered material in the country. This unprecedented success – made possible by individuals who collect recyclable materials at home, work and school – is a vital step in a closed-loop system. Further benefits from corrugate include right-sized packaging that eliminates waste, minimizes freight and shipping costs, and results in fewer trucks on the road, less fuel and lower emissions.

Here’s how it works: Every day, Pratt receives 360 truckloads of recovered paper, and every year, they reclaim three million tons of recyclable materials. Recovered fiber is separated at a Materials Recovery Facility, transported to a paper mill, broken down, cleaned, screened and pressed, then converted at a corrugator and shipped to a Home Depot store in the form of new boxes. This closed-loop process gives new life to used products and is a positive indication of the power of recycling and the profitability of sustainability. Here are some staggering statistics of Pratt’s impact in a single day:

    • 85,000 trees are saved.
    • 16,500 cubic yards of waste are diverted from landfills.
    • 35 million gallons of water are saved.
    • 20 million kWh of electricity are saved.
    • 5,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions are saved.

Pratt has also improved plastic Bubble Cushion by reducing the amount of resin used by 30% and redesigning the product to increase its strength. With less volume required in the wrap, the roll sizes can be reduced, which allows more room at stores as well as fewer trucks on the road. And finally, Pratt changed their dish-packing kit from foam to low-density polyethylene, enabling it to now be recycled.

Pratt is always innovating based on the changing needs of movers and in pursuit of opportunities to reduce its own environmental footprint. In fact, their water and energy conservation efforts save approximately 511 million gallons of water annually and up to 292 million kWh of electricity. Their recycling initiatives have protected around 1.2 million trees, and they operate a clean energy plant where materials that are otherwise destined for the landfill are converted to clean energy.

We are proud to partner with suppliers like Pratt Industries that demonstrate their dedication to sustainability and innovation about making best-in-class products that also minimize their own environmental impact and help our customers do the same.