International Paper Completes the Sale of Its Brazilian Corrugated Packaging Business

Smurfit Kappa has developed an innovative new packaging solution for detergent together with McBride, the leading European manufacturer of private label products for the cleaning and hygiene market. The Click-to-Lock Pods Box is a 100% paper-based solution which provides a sustainable and safe alternative to the traditional plastic box for laundry pods. The new packaging solution reduces CO2 emissions by 32% during production and is 100% recyclable and biodegradable. It is the latest example of how Smurfit Kappa utilises its circular business model to identify the best packaging solution for each situation alongside reducing the environmental impact. The Click-to-Lock Pods Box is tamper-proof thanks to an effective, certified child-lock system in line with the International Association of Soaps, Detergents and Maintenance Products, following successful protocol testing. It is also moisture resistant, due to a varnish inside the packaging that provides a barrier against any type of moisture from accessing the contents.

The Arctic Blue Gin package, featuring images of Northern Lights, has won a ScanStar 2020 award. Metsä Board, the leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and part of Metsä Group, designed the Arctic Blue Gin package. It featured an impressive holographic design inspired by the Northern Lights and used MetsäBoard Pro FBB Bright lightweight folding boxboard. Metsä Board designed the package structure, the original graphics, and the embossing. The Northern Lights image was created by printing on top of Envirofoil®, a plastic-free, holographic metallisation effect designed by US-based paper converter, Hazen. It uses 1% of the aluminium of traditional foil laminates – making it both economical and environmentally friendly.

Huhtamaki is planning to consolidate the production footprint in China in the Fiber Foodservice Europe-Asia-Oceania segment and will close its production sites in Tianjin and Shanghai by the end of Q2 2024. The production will be transferred to the manufacturing site in Guangzhou. Additionally, Huhtamaki continues production at the site in Xuzhou. The decision affects 154 employees in the two sites. Huhtamaki will support the impacted employees and provide assistance in finding new employment. The aim of the consolidation is to optimize the manufacturing footprint, improve the competitiveness and strengthen the foundation for future growth in the region. The announced change is part of Huhtamaki’s program to accelerate strategy implementation, announced in November 2023, expected to materially support the profitability of Huhtamaki with efficiency improvements leading to savings of approximately EUR 100 million over the next three years.