I thought I'd give one last update before year end. Prices for cardboard are slipping about $10 per ton over the past two months to about $90 to $95. Demand from China also seems to be dropping. My buyer says it's because of the strong dollar making cardboard from Europe cheaper for the Chinese mills. I started researching a mill buyer here in the northeast and am scheduled to visit them in January. It seems like a good back-up buyer in case Trump's trade policies restrict imports from China. I don't think demand for cardboard would change much because both sides have a lot to lose with high tariffs in place, but you never know. Plus I think I can get paid quicker if selling here in the US. I haven't had any problems with my current buyer and he's the only person I have sold to since I started the business but recently it has taken 60 days to get paid. That makes me a little nervous since I don't have a big enough operation to survive getting stiffed. I now have a full time driver and a part time helper that does collecting and baling for me. I think staffing will be the same for at least the next 3 or 4 months. Not many new customer adds to speak of. But the weather may become more of an issue as the first snow is expected this week. To all those reading, have a merry Christmas and happy new year!!!
Bookmarks