In 50 years, it will still do the job

Cascades is pleased to continue supporting efforts to fight effects of the pandemic. In addition to providing essential products on a daily basis that help meet the needs of Cascades' customers and consumers, the Company has donated more than 150,000 boxes over the course of 2020 to non-profit organizations that are working to respond to the needs of people who are most vulnerable during the COVID-19 emergency. "Cascades has always been committed to helping and being involved in the communities where we do business. The difficult times we are all experiencing have only made this commitment more important," said Mario Plourde, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cascades. "Every year, Cascades provides over 50,000 cardboard boxes to food banks, community organizations and other aid initiatives. Given the current situation, we have tripled these donations to help with the even greater need for transport, storage and delivery of essential food supplies to individuals who are most affected by the crisis. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Cascades has donated more than 150,000 boxes to approximately one hundred community organizations primarily involved in emergency food assistance."

Sonoco is now an official participant in the Amazon Packaging Support and Supplier Network (APASS). The APASS program was designed by Amazon to help support vendors, sellers and manufacturers to obtain certification of their products as Frustration Free Packaging (FFP), Ships-in-Own-Container (SIOC) or Prep-Free Packaging (PFP). Sonoco now provides APASS services directly to vendors, sellers and manufacturers related to package testing in compliance with Amazon’s certification test methods. In this capacity, Sonoco partners with brands to design and certify packaging that meets Amazon's unique requirements and helps companies protect and sell products more cost effectively. Click Read More below for additional information.

As shoppers and retailers head back to more routine day-to-day activities following the holiday chaos, one activity that is likely to continue well into February is gift returns. Returns are a routine cost of doing business for online retailers as part of a positive user experience. But the holidays offer more significant challenges regarding returns, particularly when you add more brick-and-mortar stores to the situation. The National Retail Federation estimates consumers will return about 16.5 percent of their gifts. A UPS study puts that at around 23 percent - a quarter of the gifts given over the holidays. In cases where an item still has value after being returned, it is imperative to maintain the integrity of the product during shipment. The easiest way to do that is through effective packaging.