Clearwater Paper Corporation announced the successful completion of its strategic acquisition of the Augusta, Georgia bleached paperboard manufacturing facility from Graphic Packaging International, LLC (“Graphic Packaging”). Terms of the acquisition were first announced on February 20, 2024. “I am pleased that we have finalized the acquisition of Graphic Packaging’s Augusta, Georgia, paperboard manufacturing facility. The Augusta mill is a great fit with our strategy and improves our position as a premier, independent paperboard supplier to North American converters. I look forward to welcoming the Augusta team to Clearwater Paper as we work together to build a more scaled paperboard business to service our customers,” said Arsen Kitch, President and Chief Executive Officer.

One of the leading renewable biomaterials suppliers, UPM, has unveiled the latest findings from a highly targeted survey of some of the world’s leading packaging designers. The survey, conducted in collaboration with the Pentawards, has revealed unique insights into sustainable packaging design, including some of the key challenges faced by designers, with UPM highlighting how these can be overcome. The survey results show that while the majority (47%) of the designer respondents feel extremely comfortable handling briefs that include sustainability requirements, 43% of packaging designers would prefer more direction or information to feel fully comfortable when dealing with these briefs. This highlights a need for further education on how to incorporate sustainability into packaging design, with most respondents (35%) suggesting material guides would be the most beneficial. Further findings reveal that 57% of the designer respondents believe they always or often have the opportunity to impact the material choice of a product. However, 20% say they seldom do, and 17% almost never, which suggests some clients may not have yet realised the value of exploring alternative and more sustainable packaging solutions.

Q1 2022 Highlights *Net Sales were $2,245 million versus $1,649 million in the prior year quarter. *Net Organic Sales increased 3% versus the prior year quarter driven by increased demand for innovative fiber-based packaging solutions and expansion into new market segments and geographies. *Net Income was $107 million versus $54 million in the prior year quarter. *Integration of recently expanded European platform continued; on track to deliver $40 million of synergies over three years. *New K2 Coated Recycled Paperboard (CRB) machine in Kalamazoo, Michigan began operating and the ramp in production is meeting expectations; on track to achieve $50 million in incremental EBITDA in 2022 and $130 million in incremental EBITDA over three years. *Global liquidity was $1,078 million at quarter end.