Paper and Valentine’s Day, The Perfect Match

Valentine’s Day is all about the exchange of cards and love notes, so it’s no surprise that the demand for paper is high on this holiday.

Here at the College of Natural Resources, we’re preparing students with the skills they need to both support the paper industry (especially during busy holiday seasons) and develop innovative ways to improve it.

So, just how much paper do we use on February 14th?

This year, more than 52% of US consumers plan on celebrating Valentine’s Day, making this holiday a 20 billion dollar industry.

Hallmark estimates that about 145 million Valentine’s Day cards are purchased annually (not including classroom cards) and Hallmark alone has 1,100 variations of Valentine’s Day cards presently available.

In recent years 47.5% of those that exchanged gifts on Valentine’s Day gave their significant other a box of candy, packaged with materials made from paper.

And you know those heart-shaped candy boxes? (Yes, the ones made of cardboard!) In 2016, more than 36 million were sold.

So, with Valentine’s Day almost over, now’s the time to stock up on all those paper-made products for the big day. Or, go big and wait until the day after when the paper-packaged candy is on sale. We won’t judge.