American Forest & Paper Association Releases March 2021 Containerboard Monthly Report

Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, has sold its investment in Soteria Flexibles Holdings LLC to TJC LP (TJC). With the Ardian North America Fund team’s support, today Soteria Flexibles is a North American leader in short-run, custom flexible packaging manufacturing serving the healthcare, fresh food, industrial, foodservice, janitorial/sanitation and commercial markets. Led by CEO Brad Herbolsheimer and headquartered in Carol Stream, IL, Soteria Flexibles was created in 2019 following Ardian’s platform acquisition of Colonial Bag, a family-owned company based outside Chicago. It provides customized high-quality packaging products in relatively small volumes to specialized businesses in underserved, high-growth sub-segments that need tailored specifications.

Amcor announced its AmFiber™ Performance Paper packaging is now available to customers in Latin America seeking a high barrier, recyclable paper-based packaging solution. Launched first for the confectionery market with cold seal, it has been recently expanded to include heat seal sachets for dry culinary and beverage applications, such as instant coffee, drink powders, spices, seasonings, and dried soups. With more than 80% paper fiber content and PVDC-free, this latest material innovation is recyclable, where a paper recycling stream exists. In addition to expanding its application to new product categories, Amcor has invested in manufacturing capacity to meet growing global demand for this kind of paper packaging, including an integrated a state-of-the-art production line in its Amcor Flexibles Alzira plant in Spain.

O-I Glass, Inc. announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) business unit to Visy Industries (Visy), one of the world’s largest privately owned packaging and resource recovery companies. Gross proceeds on the sale and related sale-leaseback agreement with Charter Hall, a leading property management company, will approximate AUD $947 million. “The sale of our ANZ operations is consistent with our strategy to properly align our business with the interests of our global customer base, improve financial flexibility and maximize shareholder value. O-I will continue to develop its leading market positions across Europe and the Americas as well as the company’s interests in Asia. The sale of ANZ follows an in-depth strategic review of our global business portfolio and operating structure which is now substantially complete following this transaction. We received a full and fair price for ANZ, and this sale represents a significant milestone in our business transformation as we optimize our structure and prioritize debt reduction,” said Andres Lopez, CEO.