American Forest & Paper Association Releases March 2021 Containerboard Monthly Report

Sonoco Products Company and ENGIE North America announced that they have entered into a Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (“VPPA”) for production from ENGIE’s Big Sampson Wind Project (“Big Sampson”), a wind power project currently under construction in Crockett County, Texas. Under the VPPA and subject to certain conditions, Sonoco and ENGIE have agreed to contract for an estimated 140 megawatts of electricity per year, representing approximately 48% of Sonoco’s U.S. electricity consumption in 2025 and approximately 52% of the expected output capacity of Big Sampson, for a term of 15 years commencing upon Big Sampson’s entry into commercial operation. The VPPA represents another step in Sonoco’s integrated approach to corporate sustainability. The Company aims to reduce global Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 25% by 2030 from a 2020 baseline through various corporate initiatives, including improved packaging design, installing energy-efficient equipment and procuring renewable energy sources. The VPPA is an example of these efforts, with renewable energy credits acquired under the VPPA expected to help reduce Sonoco’s baseline carbon emissions by approximately 14%.

UPM Raflatac announces great progress toward a more circular economy for plastics and a future beyond fossils. This progress is detailed in the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment 2021 Progress Report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). As highlighted in the report, UPM Raflatac has continued to develop its SmartChoice™ and SmartCircle™ product ranges and increased the sales volumes of these products. SmartChoice label materials are designed to reduce material usage and promote the use of recycled content and renewable materials. SmartCircle label materials support packaging recyclability and reuse and so promote the circular economy. Reducing unnecessary plastic packaging is a priority for UPM Raflatac, and through raw material optimization, it has reduced more than 450 tonnes of plastic film raw materials. UPM Raflatac has signature products, e.g., PP Lite, that have a strong reduce element, but it is also applying the reduced principle to its standard films. In addition, the company supports the switch to renewable materials by enlarging and promoting its RAFNXT+ product range, as well as bio-based plastic product range.

VPK France is a subsidiary of VPK Group – a family-owned business that is now turning into an international privately-owned packaging supplier, with over 65 plants across 20 countries. With a huge focus on sustainability and a strong existing relationship with Sun Chemical, the company recently made a strategic decision to switch ten of its French sites’ printing operations to Sun Chemical’s SunVisto AquaGreen renewable inks. While the first of VPK France’s site (based in Lille) has already made the switch to Sun Chemical’s SunVisto AquaGreen range, the remaining sites are planned to be converted sequentially by mid-2021. The inks are being used across many industries, including food, dairy, automotive, e-commerce, cosmetics and wine packaging. “Sun Chemical have been our trusted supplier for many years.” explains Philippe Tran, Managing Director of VPK France. “After a short break, VPK renewed this partnership in 2019, with the focus on SunVisto AquaGreen ink technology, which we intend to deploy across all of our corrugated packaging applications throughout our French sites. Our previous supplier did an adequate job, but the relationship was not as strong and we did not get the same sense of having such a solid shared vision – particularly around issues of productivity, sustainability and environmental responsibility. With Sun Chemical, we are able to communicate openly and with a high level of trust and transparency to get the best deals, both technically and economically. Working with a market leading company such as Sun Chemical also enables us to collaborate to form innovations that truly meet the specific needs of the market today.”