Pre-consumer Recycled Wood
Composite wood panels such as MDF and particleboard often use by-products generated during primary or secondary manufacturing, such as sawdust, shavings, chips, and bark.
Why this is Climate Smart
- Avoids disposal or incineration emissions by putting byproducts in long-lived products
- Substitutes virgin inputs, reducing pressure on forests
Traceability & Transparency
Establishing traceability and transparency for recycled material is desirable but can be quite difficult and is often considered lower priority than for virgin material.
Pros
- Waste reduction & avoided emissions: Significant diversion of high-volume waste streams and avoided emissions.
Cons & Resolutions
- Limited market transformation: Use of pre-consumer content in wood composite panels such as MDF is standard practice and often lacks transparent verification, limiting market transformation.
- Resolution: Encourage EPD disclosure. Prefer products where recycled content is independently verified and/or is higher than average. Seek out innovative products (i.e., beyond conventional panel production) that utilize pre-consumer by-products and/or post-consumer material.
