Smurfit Kappa acquires Atlas Packaging

Interfor Corporation announced that it is expecting production disruptions at its B.C. Interior sawmills during the third quarter of 2021 due to the ongoing impacts of wildfires and other factors on log supply. “The wildfires in the B.C. Interior and the related provincial state of emergency and governmentmandated curtailment of all forest harvesting activities are expected to have a significant impact on Interfor’s operations in the next several weeks or more. This is an active situation, and we are closely monitoring the implications for our operations. We are also doing what we can to help, working cooperatively with the provincial wildfire service and local communities to support the firefighting efforts. At this time there are over 230 Interfor staff and contractors and over 90 pieces of contractorowned heavy equipment dedicated to assisting the B.C. Wildfire Service in their efforts,” said Andrew Horahan, Senior Vice President of Western Operations at Interfor. Based on current information, Interfor is expecting to curtail a minimum of 50 million board feet of production across its B.C. Interior operations in August, with the possibility of further downtime in September and beyond, depending on evolving weather conditions.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) released the April 2024 Packaging Papers Monthly report. Total packaging papers and specialty packaging shipments in April increased 21% compared to April 2023. They were up 11% when compared to the same 4 months of 2023. The operating rate for unbleached packaging papers was 94%, up 15.8 points from April 2023 and up 4.2 points year-to-date. Shipments of the biggest subgrade in bleached packaging papers – food wrapping – 25,800 short tons for the month of April, down 0.5% from the same month last year and down 2.3% year-to-date.

Today we announce a series of ambitious climate targets. This includes a science-based target which requires at least a 40% reduction of CO2 emissions per tonne of product by 2030, compared to 2019 levels, and a commitment to reach Net Zero* emissions by 2050. These targets will be validated by the Science Based Targets initiative** as being in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement. To further underline our ambition and commitment, we are also announcing our membership of the UN’s Race to Zero. "I’m delighted DS Smith has joined the UN’s Race to Zero. It is great to see a company with an ambitious 2030 target and commitment to reach Net Zero by 2050. DS Smith is making great progress against its previous carbon reduction targets, tackling the challenges associated with decarbonising the paper and packaging sector. Business plays a key role in driving the UK’s transition to a low carbon economy, with over 40 of the FTSE100 now signed up to the UN’s Race to Zero, I hope this announcement inspires other companies in the sector to take action." — Andrew Griffith MP, former business advisor to the PM and current UK Net Zero Business Champion