Advocacy, volunteerism, and sustainability efforts are all showcased in this section. You’ll also find letters from FPA’s president, who offers her valuable perspective on those topics and more.

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation: Circularity More Relevant Than Ever

Analyzing the Status of a Circular Economy

In 2016, The Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) decided to bring plastic packaging into the circular economy. The foundation’s message is clear: “The vision aims at ensuring that plastic never becomes a waste by 1) eliminating the plastic we don’t need; 2) innovating to ensure that the plastics we do need are reusable, recyclable, and compostable; […]

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National
Welcome to the 117th Congress

Welcome to the 117th Congress

Fresh Start Might Mean More Productive Year in 2021

2020 felt like both the longest and the shortest of years. In many respects, it seemed to be never-ending—particularly when it came to the endless election cycle and continuous online meetings. At the same time, given the chaotic nature of adapting to pandemic life and the pressure to complete legislation to address the pandemic response, […]

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State
2021 Framed by Fall Elections

2021 Framed by Fall Elections

State and Local Governments Will Be Picking Up Packaging Issues

Last year, elections at the state level had an outsized importance similar to elections at the federal level. A major driver was the 2020 census and the redistricting that will happen starting next year for Congressional and state legislative districts. State legislatures generally oversee that process, so an incredible amount of money and attention was […]

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ESKO DONATES SOFTWARE LICENSES

Esko made a multi-million-dollar, in-kind donation to support college and university students in their packaging engineering and technology studies.The global developer of integrated software and hardware solutions for the packaging, label, and wide-format sectors has extended its no-charge donation of software licenses to leading educational institutions across the U.S. “We strongly believe in investing in […]

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SIEGWERK PROVIDES MEALS

At the flexible packaging headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, Siegwerk employees normally participate in Meals from the Heartland, a nonprofit organization composed of volunteers who package meals for delivery to feed people around the world, as well as in the U.S. The meals include rice, soy protein, dried vegetables, and vitamins. During the pandemic, Siegwerk […]

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Novolex Donates Materials to Create Face Shields

In April, Novolex donated plastic sheets needed to make face shields to protect health care workers and other first responders as they tackled the COVID-19 pandemic. Individual face shields were cut from up to one-ton rolls of transparent polyethylene produced at Novolex manufacturing centers and then were affixed onto head harnesses at assembly points across […]

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MICHELMAN HOLDS ANNUAL DAY OF SERVICE

Michelman held its ninth Annual Commitment to Community Day in September, with more than 400 associates joining in to help during the pandemic. Staff safely volunteered their time at various charitable and nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S., Belgium, Luxembourg, Japan, Singapore, and China, the company says. Many volunteer activities were conducted outdoors while wearing masks […]

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National
Advocacy in a Time of Unknowns

Advocacy in a Time of Unknowns

Planning will be difficult

November is the month of the great unknowns. Questions abound, including how will the elections turn out? Who will be the president come January? Will the Senate flip to the Democrats’ control? Where will we be in fighting the pandemic and will some type of normalcy return, or will we be in the grip of new COVID-19 breakouts and […]

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Charity Work Goes Digital Because of Virus

American Packaging Corp. (APC) and its owners—the Schottland family—have long been involved with The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, founded by the late film star and philanthropist Paul Newman in Ashford, Connecticut.

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2021 Ripe With Political Pros and Cons

2020 was not the year anyone expected, and 2021 will not be either. Along with the ongoing efforts to fight the novel coronavirus, the outcome of the elections—with both chambers in play, as well as the presidency—will shape 2021 and the next four years.

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Flexible Packaging: An “Essential” Place to Be

Flexible Packaging: An “Essential” Place to Be

Sustainability Remains Important as Opportunities Grow

It’s a great time to be in flexible packaging, especially if you’re a vertically integrated, domestic manufacturer like Plastic Packaging Technologies. I’m guessing many other leaders in this industry feel the same way.

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National
With Summer Over, Advocacy Work Shifts

With Summer Over, Advocacy Work Shifts

In Washington, Labor Day is seen as the official end to summer, when Congress returns to the Capitol from its August recess and jumps into a busy legislative session as the end of the federal fiscal year approaches. After months of unceasing extraordinary situations—states reopening, police protests/riots, new COVID outbreaks, party conventions, market swings, trade […]

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Novolex Workers Help With Beach Clean-Up

Novolex Workers Help With Beach Clean-Up

After Hurricane Dorian, more than 30 employees from Novolex’s Jacksonville manufacturing plant—plus their families—hit the beaches in September 2019. Part of a coastal cleanup day organized by the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, the workers at Novolex—an alliance member—collected debris using an app to track the type and amount of waste collected. “Beach cleanups are near and […]

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State

State Legislatures Rebound During Summer

As the summer began, a majority of states had gone back into action following COVID-19 shutdowns. Many of the actions and regulatory proceedings will have a direct impact on flexible packaging for many years to come. New Jersey S2515 was introduced in New Jersey on June 4. It would establish new recycled-content standards for rigid […]

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Liquibox Employees Step Up to Deliver Vital Supplies

Production employees at Liquibox’s Bangkok facility in Thailand wanted to go above and beyond and deliver something more than packaging for vital supplies during the early stages of the pandemic. They came up with the idea of making face shields for protecting medical personnel by using raw materials purchased from local businesses. During lunch and […]

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Berry Global Helps People With Special Needs

Berry Global holds events throughout the year to help people with special needs. For example, employees in Lewisburg, Tennessee, volunteered at the Special Olympics last year to help provide year-round training and competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.In Montgomery, Alabama, Berry Global workedwith the Arc of Eastern Elmore County. Berry’s Montgomery site created […]

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