Packaging Corporation of America’s containerboard mill in DeRidder, Louisiana, recently announced that it is offering scholarships to two graduating seniors from each of six local schools: DeRidder High School, Merryville High School, Singer High School, East Beauregard High School, Rosepine High School and South Beauregard High School. For each school, one scholarship will be awarded in the amount of $1,000 and another at $500. The criteria used to select the recipients includes financial need, scholastic excellence, extra-curricular activities and relationship of degree to the papermaking industry.

Elopak has announced plans to build its first U.S. production plant with the latest state-of-the-art technology for better and more efficient production. The plant will produce Pure-Pak® cartons for liquid dairy, juices, plant-based products and liquid eggs. The new production facility will be located in Little Rock, Arkansas and is expected to start production in H1, 2025. It represents a significant investment for the region of around USD 70 million including the land, the building and the equipment. The new plant will create more than 100 permanent jobs in the region for engineers, printers, operators, logistics specialists and other support groups.

Aluminum food and beverage cans are having a moment, with manufacturers and analysts alike predicting a strong year for the sector. Crown Holdings aims to harness those timely growth opportunities while simultaneously advancing its sustainability work, said Sandrine Duquerroy-Delesalle, Crown’s vice president of global sustainability and external affairs. “We are on track with the commitments that we made five years ago, and we are even more ambitious now,” Duquerroy-Delesalle said, also highlighting the importance of collaboration across the value chain to promote sustainability. Although certain goals have shifted, overall “people are more and more conscious — I think this is across Europe and the U.S. — about circularity and how can they get their packaging to be collected and recycled. ... Circularity is very important to our business.”