Omet Americas opens Innovation Center

How2Recycle has been the gold standard of on-product labeling for recyclability since 2008. Sonoco Alloyd has been pre-qualified to carry the How2Recycle label on the EnviroSense® PaperBlister™ package. The PaperBlister has been embraced by manufacturers, customers and consumers since its debut in 2019. The product has won multiple awards in recent years for smart design and innovative, sustainable features. The How2Recycle pre-qualification is the latest sustainable achievement for the PaperBlister™ and will allow Sonoco to continue helping brands meet their sustainability goals and expand on products’ curbside recyclability. The PaperBlister package is all paper, plastic-free, made entirely from renewable resources and can be fully recycled into the paper stream unlike traditional plastic blisters. How2Recycle labels help customers and consumers understand the difference in lookalike packaging, as well as what can be recycled, and how.

2023 Highlights: *Net Sales were $9,428 million, flat versus the prior year. *Net Income was $723 million, an increase of 39% versus the prior year. *Year-end net leverage was 2.8x versus 3.2x at prior year end. Michael Doss, the Company's President and CEO said, "While 2023 was a year of transition for consumer packaging, it was one of outstanding execution for Graphic Packaging. We significantly expanded profitability, achieved strong earnings growth and delivered innovative sustainable packaging solutions that consumers prefer. Our disciplined approach and commitment to delivering results for customers was on full display during a year of well-chronicled inventory normalization for both retailers and consumer packaged goods companies. While we did experience 4% negative organic sales growth for the year, our innovation sales exceeded $200 million, and our overall performance was excellent. We are well positioned to return to positive organic sales growth in 2024, which has started to materialize in improved volumes quarter to date."

Over the past few years, recycled paper made from 100% secondary fibers has turned the Koehler Paper Group into the premium provider of creative board. A firm favorite of the crafting and office segments, this product has recently established itself in the packaging industry and has even gained traction in the high-end segment. While Koehler Paper Group's plant in Thuringia impresses with its "Blue Angel" eco-label, the brilliant colors of its paper products are the real highlight. The newest addition to the range is called "EcoBlack". Udo Hollbach, managing director of Koehler Greiz GmbH & Co. KG has this to say about the new product: "EcoBlack is an extraordinarily high-quality paper that captivates with a deep, rich black and was specially developed for high-quality packaging. It is the next logical step for our range of vibrantly colored recycled paper. With this product, we are catering to our customers' wish that a product avoids doing harm to human health or the environment, without having to sacrifice its aesthetics. EcoBlack is lightfast, resistant to bleeding, color migration and wear." For the product developers at Koehler, it goes without saying that all its paper is ideally suited to further processing. Since EcoBlack is produced completely carbon-free, it lends itself particularly well to embellishment through foil stamping.