What is cartonboard?
Cartonboard is a thick, stiff, print-ready paperboard designed for folding cartons, the pre-glued boxes that hold cereal, cosmetics, medicine, and countless other consumer goods. It is a multi-ply product: a stiff middle layer for rigidity, a printable top layer for branding, and a bottom layer that varies by application. Grammages range from 170 g/m² (small cosmetic cartons) to 450 g/m² (heavy premium packaging).
Cartonboard differs from containerboard in that it is a flat paperboard designed for folded cartons, not corrugated boxes. Cartonboard goes directly to a folding carton converter who prints and die-cuts it into cartons. Containerboard first passes through a corrugator that bonds it with fluting.
What are the four main cartonboard grades?
FBB (folding boxboard): multi-ply board with a bleached chemical pulp top layer, a mechanical pulp middle, and a brown or white back. Used for food, pharma, and cosmetics folding cartons where printability matters.
SBS (solid bleached sulfate): bleached chemical pulp throughout all layers, producing a premium white board with excellent print surface. Used for premium cosmetics, tobacco, and frozen-food cartons. The most expensive cartonboard grade.
CUK (coated unbleached kraft): unbleached kraft pulp throughout, with a clay coating on one side for print. Brown appearance, strong and moisture-resistant. Used for beverage multipacks (beer, soft drinks) and frozen food trays.
WLC (white-lined chipboard): recycled furnish with a bleached white liner on top. Cheapest cartonboard grade. Used for low-cost folding cartons where print premium is not required.
What grammages does cartonboard come in?
Most commercial cartonboard is in the 200 to 350 g/m² range. Pharma cartons typically use 200 to 260 g/m². Cereal boxes use 230 to 300 g/m². Cosmetics premium cartons run 280 to 400 g/m². Beverage multipacks use 350 to 450 g/m² CUK for the outer wrap.
Thickness (caliper) matters as much as grammage for carton rigidity. A 300 g/m² FBB is typically 400 to 500 microns thick, thanks to the bulky mechanical-pulp middle ply.
Who are the main cartonboard producers?
FBB is dominated by Stora Enso, Metsä Board, Sappi, and Mayr-Melnhof (MM). These are Nordic and Central European producers. SBS is dominated by North American producers: Graphic Packaging, International Paper, and WestRock, plus Sappi (Alfeld, Germany). CUK is led by Graphic Packaging and WestRock in the US and by Metsä Board in Europe. WLC is a more fragmented segment produced by Prinzhorn, Saica, and dozens of smaller European and Asian mills.
Asian cartonboard production is growing. Sun Paper (China), APP (Indonesia), and Nine Dragons (China) operate large FBB and SBS machines serving domestic consumer goods growth.
How does cartonboard compete with alternatives?
Cartonboard's main competitors are plastic packaging (for frozen food trays, pharma blisters) and molded pulp (for consumer electronics trays, egg cartons). Regulatory pressure against single-use plastics favors cartonboard for many consumer goods applications. Walmart, Unilever, and Nestlé have all increased cartonboard use in recent years at the expense of plastic blisters and trays.
Within paperboard, cartonboard faces competition from corrugated board in some borderline applications. E-commerce shipping cartons are almost always corrugated, not cartonboard, because corrugated offers better transport strength per dollar.
What certifications apply to cartonboard?
Food-contact: BfR XXXVI (DE), FDA 21 CFR 176.170 (US), Swiss Ordinance, ISEGA, AIB. Forestry: FSC, PEFC, SFI. Recyclability: APR-US, 4evergreen (EU). Toy safety: EN 71-3 for cartonboard used in children's product packaging.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between FBB and SBS?
FBB (folding boxboard) has a bleached top layer and a mechanical pulp middle. SBS (solid bleached sulfate) is bleached chemical pulp throughout all layers. SBS is whiter, stronger per gram, and more expensive. FBB is bulkier and cheaper at the same caliper.
What GSM is a cereal box?
Most cereal boxes use 230 to 280 g/m² FBB or WLC with a bleached top liner. The paperboard is about 400 to 500 microns thick, giving the carton its stack strength and shelf appearance.
Can cartonboard be recycled?
Yes. FBB, SBS, and WLC all enter the recovered paper stream and can be pulped back into cartonboard or graphic paper. CUK with polyethylene coating or wax coating is harder to recycle, which is why PE-free barriers are a growth area in cartonboard innovation.
What is the difference between cartonboard and corrugated?
Cartonboard is a single-layer flat paperboard used for folding cartons (like a cereal box). Corrugated board is a sandwich of liner and fluting used for shipping boxes (like a moving box). The two serve different packaging purposes, at different grammages.
Why is SBS so much more expensive than FBB?
SBS uses chemical pulp throughout all layers; FBB uses cheaper mechanical pulp in the middle. At the same caliper, SBS is 15 to 30% more expensive per tonne. Brands pay the premium when the print surface and purity matter, for example in pharma and premium cosmetics.
Is cartonboard the same as paperboard?
Paperboard is the broader term covering any heavy paper above about 170 g/m². Cartonboard is the subset designed specifically for folding cartons. Containerboard (for corrugated boxes) is another subset. Paperboard includes both.