The Flexible Packaging Association is keeping tabs on the many opportunities to overcome workforce challenges.
Read MoreJanice Kresin
FPA President and CEO Dan Felton offers his valuable perspective on consumer trends, legislative change, sustainability, and more. Keep your finger on the pulse of the flexible packaging industry by learning about the obstacles and achievements outlined in these letters.
Duraco Buys Strata-Tac
Duraco Specialty Materials recently bought Strata-Tac, Inc., a manufacturer of custom-engineered pressure-sensitive self-adhesive products and top-coated films. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Strata-Tac, headquartered in St. Charles, Illinois, was founded in 1995. Duraco is headquartered in Forest Park, Illinois, and has a workforce of 400 employees. “The addition of Strata-Tac’s expertise in water-based […]
Read More2022 Merger Leads to New Branding, Corporate Name
Syracuse Label, Macaran Printed Products, and W.N. Van Alstine & Sons have rebranded under a new group name and corporate identity, The NextGen Label Group™. The change combines the three operating units under one identity and better reflects the organization’s commitment to its employee owners and the customer communities they serve following a June 2022 merger, […]
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FPA Responds to News Program on Plastic Recycling
The Flexible Packaging Association (FPA) recently responded to an ABC News segment on plastic recycling, saying people need to stop vilifying plastic bags and packaging. The nearly 30-minute program—“Trashed: The Secret Life of Plastic Recycling”—primarily looks at the recycling of plastic bags in the United States. By using electronic trackers placed in bags, the news […]
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BOBST Acquires Majority Stake in Robotics Company
Switzerland-based BOBST recently reported it has acquired a majority share in Dücker Robotics, based in Italy. The 70% equity stake in Dücker will help BOBST fulfill its vision for packaging production, the company says. Dücker uses robots in loading and palletizing in the corrugated board sector, while offering opportunities in the folding carton industry. Dücker’s […]
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Amcor Plans Purchase of Moda Systems
Amcor says it intends to buy New Zealand-based Moda Systems, a manufacturer of automated protein packaging machines. Privately held Moda designs, assembles, and supports high-performance modular vacuum packaging solutions for the meat, poultry, and dairy industries. The deal, subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to be completed in the June 2023 quarter. Amcor said […]
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TIPA Compostable Packaging Buys Bio4Pack
Israel-based TIPA Compostable Packaging has bought Bio4Pack in a deal that will give TIPA a foothold in the Netherlands and Germany, according to a recent report from Packaging News. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. “There is a great value and strength in cooperating with other players in the sustainable packaging solutions industry,” said […]
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MSU School of Packaging Celebrates Major Renovation
Michigan State University (MSU) recently celebrated the opening of its newly renovated MSU School of Packaging, following a fundraising campaign that raised more than $10 million. “This significant expansion of our facilities, enabled by the generosity of donors and stakeholders, will reinforce MSU’s longstanding leadership in packaging education,” said MSU Interim President Teresa K. Woodruff, Ph.D., […]
Read MoreCompostable Flexible Packaging Facility Planned in Guatemala
India-based Yash Pakka Limited (YPL) intends to open a plant in Central America by 2025 to make compostable flexible packaging for sale in North America. The company has signed a memorandum of understanding with Guatemala’s major sugar companies to procure bagasse, the primary raw material used for its products, according to an article in Paper […]
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High Achievers
Innovation and Sustainability Efforts Garner Gold in Annual Contest
May/June 2023
In all, 87 package entries were submitted in the 67th Annual Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards competition for a total of 230 entries—some packages were entered into multiple categories.
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Packages Grab Award Spotlight
A Closer Look at More Gold Award Winners
May/June 2023
The top winners of the Flexible Packaging Association’s 67th Annual Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards Competition ranked in the categories of packaging excellence, technical innovation, expanding the use of flexible packaging, shelf impact, and printing.
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Compass Report Provides Direction
AMERIPEN and PMMI Outline Growth Opportunities
May/June 2023
A growing number of states are crafting extended producer responsibility laws that shift more of the cost for local recycling onto consumer brands. This report aims to help companies make the most of recycling opportunities.
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A Closer Look at Kevin Keneally
President and CEO, PPC Flexible Packaging
May/June 2023
In this issue, we interview Kevin Keneally, president and CEO of PPC Flexible Packaging and a board member of the Flexible Packaging Association.
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Virginia Tech Develops Master’s Program in Sustainable Packaging
May/June 2023
We talk to Laszlo Horvath, an associate professor at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, who also serves as director of the Center for Packaging and Unit Load Design.
Read MoreGridlock Marks Start of 2023 on Capitol Hill
FPA Continues to Monitor Congress and Biden Administration
May/June 2023
The situation in Washington, D.C., as we enter late spring and early summer is pretty much what was anticipated—a Congress that has accomplished little of meaningful substance to date.
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‘Packaging Compass’ Survey Offers Sustainability Insights
May/June 2023
Recyclers often note that from the time one begins to plan for the development of a materials recovery facility, it takes an average of 10 years to complete. In that time, packaging can shift dramatically as converters and brands replace materials, develop new formats, and launch innovative technologies designed to make packaging more effective in its roles—and to be recyclable.
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SPMC® Holds Sterile Packaging Day for 2023
May/June 2023
The Sterilization Packaging Manufacturers Council celebrated Sterile Packaging Day on February 8 with the theme of “Designed to Protect” to honor medical packaging engineers.
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ELC Seminar Shows Where Each Player Fits In
May/June 2023
Organizers created a program that demonstrated what goes into producing a flexible package from start to finish along the supply chain. Each step requires every player to do his or her own part to ensure overall success.
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Overview of FPA Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards Competition
May/June 2023
Since 1956, the Flexible Packaging Association has conducted the annual Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards Competition to showcase the industry’s innovation and the advances that have changed packaging.
Read MoreEducating on the Differences Between PFAs and PPAs
May/June 2023
Six states have adopted laws that focus on regulating the intentional use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in food packaging. The regulations, however, do not equate to a total ban on the use of PFAS, and the industry needs to do more to educate on the differences between PFAS and the fluoropolymers we use as polymer processing aids.
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