A new report by market researcher IBIS World paints an optimistic future for corrugated boxes over the next five years. Sales as a percentage of industry revenues are forecast to rise nearly 64% largely because of overall improved economic conditions and manufacturing output, according to the report. Another market researcher, Report Buyer, is forecasting the global corrugated packaging market to have a compound annual growth rate of 4.6% through the year 2020.

It’s likely a good chunk of those sales will come from Wal-Mart. According to circulatenews.org, the world’s largest retailer uses close to 3 million tons of cardboard annually.

Which brings to mind the ever-growing interest in sustainable materials used in corrugated boxes and other packaging. (WalMart’s annual consumption represents about 6% of the country’s total amount of recycled cardboard, according to circulatenews.org.) The website reports in a recent article that a new material called “ECOR” is rapidly gaining traction among interested buyers in global brands and retailers. The material, developed in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Products Lab, is described as “a diverse collection of high performance building materials and products that are made from 100% recycled waste sources and is free of the toxic glues and chemical binding agents.”