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While cardboard packaging is certainly gaining popularity with the eco-conscious, standard jewel case and DVD case are still the majority of disc packaging. They are also most budget-friendly. So can a jewel case or DVD case be both budget and eco-friendly?

Jewel Case

Jewel case has been the standard audio CD packaging since the late 80s. It is made out of Polystyrene, is used to make disposable cutlery, containers and the likes. This type of plastic is notorious for recycling because it takes a very long time to biodegrade. That’s why you don’t hear about recycled jewel case all that much, except for a few companies such as GreenDisk that sells jewel cases made of 100% recycled materials that they collect.

If your goal is to do something good to the environment, you may as well avoid jewel case as a whole.

DVD Case

The DVD style case is made of a different material Polypropylene. Name brands such as AGI’s Amaray is made of 100% virgin plastic, the result is a stronger and heavier case, which is also more expensive to manufacture. The great thing about Polypropylene is that it is readily recyclable. Due to cost and availability of recycled Polystyrene, many DVD cases are made of a mix of virgin and recycled material.  These recycled cases are widely used, depending on the amount of recycled content, they are softer and may bend or break on shipping. You can tell if a DVD case is recycled by smelling it, recycled Polypropylene smells like burnt rubber. The higher the recycled content is, the stronger the smell.

Color DVD Case

DVD cases come in a variety of colors, opaque or translucent. Because of the coloring, it has to be made from virgin materials. So the only “recycled” DVD case you will find is in black.

You may be wondering now if it is any easier to choose a recycled cardboard CD DVD packaging. Find out what you should know about recycled cardboard CD DVD packaging.

What is your experiences with recycled CD or DVD cases? Share your story in the comments below!

Photo courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/andresrueda/3064596190/

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