CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel - An Israeli company has come up with a new product made of recycled paper fibers and plastic -- pipes that rival steel in strength.

The American Israeli Paper Mills Group (AIPM) showed samples of the pipes to Israeli President Shimon Peres and National Infrastructures Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer during a tour of the company's main paper mill plant in Hadera.

Sixty to 70 percent of the new pipes, called Cycletech, are made up of recycled paper and plastic.

The company's Research and Development Department developed the unique bonding agent that gives the pipe its strength, resilience and flexibility.

Amnir, a paper recycling subsidiary of AIPM, hopes to double the percentage of recycled paper in the country, from 25 percent at present to 50 percent, bringing Israel up to European standards in paper recycling.

At present, Amnir recycles 220,000 tons of paper and plastic annually, consisting of 160,000 tons of packing material, 50,000 tons of household paper - e.g., newspaper - and 6,000 tons of plastic.

The company hopes to produce packing materials made of 100 percent recycled paper, requiring recycling of an additional 200,000 tons of packing material.

Amnir also hopes to increase the amount of recycled plastic by 3,000 tons annually.

Source: The Jerusalem Post