Millcraft In Stock Magazine Issue 4 by Millcraft

Insight into the paper, packaging and graphic arts industry

VOLUME 2 • ISSUE 1 • 2015

Outside the box BR Printers solves its challenges with a new packaging system

INSIDE Driving sales using different media Q&A with TwoSides’ Phil Riebel Paper pricing update Chris Gerhold General Manager, BR Printers

Volume 2, Issue 1 • Spring 2015

welcome In my job, I do a lot of observing … not only what’s going on inside Millcraft, but every bit as important, what’s going on outside our company’s walls. The truth is, so many things are happening in our industry and the overall economy right now that directly or indirectly affect us and our customers, on both large and small scales. No doubt, anyone who monitors our industry is seeing an undeniable, largescale, transformative trend that stands to affect anyone and everyone who produces, sells and buys paper products. That trend is massive consolidation. From coast to coast, paper companies are acquiring, being acquired and merging. Big competing mills like Verso and NewPage — both major coated paper producers — are joining forces. The movement is changing the landscape of paper production and affecting what it means to be a paper manufacturer and distributor. Gone are the days of selling only to large commercial printers. Today’s paper company sells much of its product directly to end-product manufacturers, many of which have set up their own internal printing operations. The ability to sell paper as a commodity based solely on volume has been replaced in the past 10 years by a need to provide value-added thought leadership and solution-driven business models. Today’s paper customers are niche-specific, seeking vendors who are willing to become partners, to work alongside them, to help craft customized solutions to unique challenges. In this issue of In Stock, you’ll read about some of the ways in which the paper industry is evolving to meet the needs of the modern marketplace. You’ll learn how companies are driving sales through multimedia channels. You’ll learn the story behind recycled paper, and about Two Sides, an organization dedicated to dispelling the myths surrounding the paper industry. In our cover feature, you’ll get to know BR Printers — a commercial printer in need of a new packaging solution — and see how Millcraft partnered with it to deliver that solution. As the industry continues to change, Millcraft is committed to changing right along with it, investing in both the people and equipment we need in order to deliver the solutions our customers need. I hope this issue of In Stock gives you a valuable window into how the overall industry — and Millcraft in particular — is preparing for the future. Sincerely,

contents Cover Story 6

Thinking outside the box

BR Printers solves its labor, speed and waste challenges with a new packaging system

2 Letter from the president

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

4 In brief

News and trends in paper, packaging and design

5 New & notable

Interesting products and ideas in the world of

paper and packaging

Features

10 12 13

Travis Mlakar President The Millcraft Paper Company (216) 429-9823 mlakart@millcraft.com @mlakart

Keeping up with a changing paper industry

Editor: Todd Shryock Associate Editors: Erik Cassano Sue Ostrowski David Searls Art Director: Lori Smith Project Manager: Erin Walker

In the industry Driving retail using different media Q&A with Two Sides’ Phil Riebel Paper forms are still an important part of doing business Giovanni Cattoni, CEO of Burgo Paper North America, talks about understanding recycled paper

In the family 15 The latest trends in paper pricing

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in brief Trends in consumer packaging Holographic foils are no longer used just for high-dollar beauty-care packaging. Today’s consumer demand for visually appealing product packaging means foils are being used for oral care, health care and other categories that were previously more budget conscious. This trend has been influenced by consumer response, says Andi Gudgeon, owner of APEX 360° Packaging Studio, a leading sales sample, comp and mock-up supplier serving the most recognizable brands across the U.S. and globally. Because holographic effects are eye catching and demand attention, they accomplish the first goal of a brand, which is to get the consumer to notice the package and pick it up. Sustainability is also trending in consumer packaging. The role of sustainability is being played by the primary substrate, which could be the board type or bottle material, as well as the overall size and shape of the package. A smaller package that takes up less shelf space is a sustainability win, and reusable packaging is also well received by consumers, says Gudgeon. To meet the expectations of today’s consumers, APEX 360° partners with manufacturers to provide true-to-life samples in small quantities for design, technical layout, testing and early sell in. Samples can take lead time pressure off the manufacturer and prevent costly mistakes when designing the packaging that consumers seek.

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

new& notable

Domtar refreshes Xerox® Paper and Specialty Media Line to help customers choose the right product Domtar Corp., which acquired the Xerox® Paper and Specialty Media Line for the U.S. and Canada in 2013, has not only improved and optimized the product line but also updated its organization and packaging to help guide customers to the appropriate product for their needs. Products have been reorganized into three families.

Which private-label brand is right for you? Private label paper can help your products stand out in the marketplace, providing quality, mill-branded product, labeled with a merchant’s private brand name. One option is the domestically produced Transcend brand, a Millcraft exclusive that was created to help Millcraft differentiate itself and reflect its core business values in a commodity-driven marketplace Thus, Transcend — which hits the market this spring — provides customers the benefit of knowing that their copy paper, uncoated offset and envelopes are manufactured in the U.S. and third-party certified to Forest Stewardship Council® and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® Standard. Companies interested in giving back to the community should also consider the buy & give brand, which provides quality office paper that is not only U.S.-made but supports local charities. For every carton of buy & give paper purchased, Millcraft donates $1 to selected charities throughout its footprint. For more information about how your company can benefit from utilizing private label paper, including Millcraft’s two brands, Transcend and buy & give, contact your local Millcraft account manager or call (800) 860-2482.

• Vitality™ includes versatile office papers that are great for a wide variety of uses and always provide great-looking results. • Bold™ is a line of professional office and digital printing papers designed to give users the highestquality results so that their work always looks a step above the rest. • Revolution™ offers a wide variety of specialized paper, films and materials that allow customers to create professional-looking marketing and business building tools.

The changes were made to help customers make better paper choices based on their usage and project needs, as well as modernize the look to align with Xerox’s strong positioning within the marketplace. Many of the product features have been enhanced to meet market demands. For example, the papers have been optimized to perform in a wide variety of devices, eliminating the need to choose paper by print device. Also, the rigorous Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) certification has been added to nearly all its office papers and digital printing paper products.

To get the latest in paper, packaging and graphic arts industry news, visit www.millcraft.com to sign up for Millcraft’s enewsletters, PaperClips and FullCircle.

Transform surfaces into a chalkboard wallCHALKER™ is an innovative architectural design product that easily transforms walls, tables and other surfaces into a chalkboard. This new product from MACtac, an international producer of pressure-sensitive adhesive technology, is a true black, slightly textured, 4.6 mil vinyl that elevates the humble chalkboard into a dynamic new media for commercial and residential use. You can turn virtually any size surface into a chalkboard canvas in a fraction of the time it takes with messy paint. The liquid chalk ink easily wipes clean using an eraser or damp cloth. wallChalker™ can be cut into customizable shapes and is easily removable and repositionable. Use wallCHALKER™ for: • Tables • Points of purchase, menu boards • Ads • Kitchen signboards • Meeting rooms • Walls

Wrap loads correctly every time Rotoplat 708 is a standard-setting, semiautomatic turntable stretch wrapping machine from Robopac, a leading international manufacturer of stretch film wrapping technology. Robopac’s intuitive seven-inch touchscreen makes it easy to set up the correct parameters for wrapping each of your loads to ensure they reach your customer in as-made condition. The system allows you to control prestretch, containment force, rotation speed, roping and banding at nine levels on each load. Once you’ve set your standards, Rotoplat 708 makes it simple to hold those standards, and software allows you to record up to six unique wrapping programs. The innovative technology allows you to wrap your loads correctly every time, ensuring the ultimate load protection and film savings again and again.

Visit mymillcraft.com to order online.

Chris Gerhold explains the benefits of his new equipment to one of his employees.

BR Printers solves its labor, speed and waste challenges with a new packaging system By David Searls

illing a seemingly never-ending line of corrugated cardboard boxes, each with up to 40 pounds of textbooks, is laborintensive, backbreaking work, especially during busy season, and Chris Gerhold was looking for a way to address those production hassles. Gerhold is regional manager of the Independence, Kentucky, facility of BR Printers, a commercial printing firm headquartered in California specializing in bookstore-quality printing and printon-demand capabilities. Textbook publishing is an important part of its business — and 40-pound loaded and shipped boxes are a fact of life. Gerhold, who had long been on the lookout for an automation solution for his manual book-packing production line, dipped his toe in the water by demo-ing a box and carton erector. “We have people making cartons every day,” he says. “So we were trying to find a different way to deal with our packaging, but it was just an offline piece of equipment that didn’t seal the boxes.” In other words, the borrowed equipment only solved one very narrow area of need. It took a flat corrugated cardboard carton and bent it along its scored lines to shape a box that was ready to accept a load, but manual labor was still required to tape it. The standalone unit addressed one small part of the problem, but it didn’t do nearly enough to reduce Gerhold’s labor and workflow speed challenges.

Thinking

outside

the box

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

The opportunity Gerhold found his solution through his Millcraft account manager, Duane Neher. Neher worked with BR Printing to help implement the Combi Ergomatic Hand Pack Station from Combi Packaging System. The Combi consists of a case erector that makes and tapes boxes, multispeed conveyor and a case sealer — equipment that allows workers to pack from a standing position, reducing bending, squatting and straining — and the risk of workers’ comp injuries

Photography by Joe Harrison

Visit mymillcraft.com to order online.

Since installing the Combi equipment, BR Printers has seen an increase in productivity and quality.

— while increasing workflow speed and efficiency. The entire Combi station showed up in the company parking lot in the back of a tractor-trailer, ready to run a short bookpacking line. Gerhold was able to get in the truck, walk around the equipment, touch it and get a demonstration of how it worked. Later, he went to the plant in Canton, Ohio, and saw it in full operation. He also had the opportunity to meet with an engineer there who knew the Combi frontward and backward and who answered all of his questions. Gerhold was sold. Packaging equipment technical specialists at Millcraft helped BR Printing set up the Combi system when it arrived. Because the operations of no two companies are identical, solutions must be customized to fit each customer’s needs in terms of functionality, working space and workforce makeup. The Combi Ergomatic Hand Pack Station was configured at BR Printers in a way that conformed to the shape of the space it 8

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

would fill and to the crew working the equipment. It came immediately off of the customer’s shrink-wrap line, where textbooks are individually wrapped, and the employees on the floor took quickly to the new equipment and work style. “It greatly reduced my labor on packaging and on the manual creation of boxes,” says Gerhold. With the Combi system, Gerhold was able to reduce headcount on that book-packing line from as many as four employees to just one or two. As for workflow speed, Gerhold found that Combi automation packs even more of a punch than he needs. “It maxes out at about 12 cartons a minute,” he says. “But it would be pretty hard for us to run this thing at its full capacity.” In addition, there’s been at least one unanticipated benefit. “The quality and integrity of the boxes are better with the new machine, and we use less tape,” he says. Because humans make mistakes,

especially well into long shifts, Gerhold was used to boxes being taken offline to be retaped or tossed because some adhesive strips were too large, some too small. At other times, the tape got placed off center so that the folded panels weren’t secured and loaded boxes broke. It was a waste of tape, cartons and time, all of which were reclaimed with the Combi station. “That was part of the decision-making process — being able to justify the labor we reduced and the speed we’d gain, along with the accuracy and the quality improvements on all of our shipped products,” says Gerhold. The justification passed muster. The new equipment was so well received by the home office that two stations were purchased — one for the Kentucky facility and one for a location in New Jersey.

and they’ve done a good job of thinking outside of the box, beyond paper,” says Gerhold. “Duane Neher, our account manager, has been very helpful, and he brings us new ideas to help us improve our business. We’re always looking for new ways to become more productive, and Millcraft’s team of printing and packaging experts helps us do so.” Since that initial equipment sale, Millcraft’s partnership with BR Printers has grown. In addition to equipment maintenance services, Gerhold regularly buys 3M packing tape, case sealer tape, recyclable kraft paper to fill the voids in packed boxes instead of plastic, oil-based products such as bubble wrap and stretch wrap for wrapping pallets for shipping. “They’re always showing us new technologies for shrink wrap and different solutions for packing and shipping different size and weight materials,” says Gerhold.

“The quality and integrity of the boxes are better with the new machine, and we use less tape.” > Chris Gerhold, general manager, BR Printers

In the end, business is not about lowering prices; it’s about working with you to lower costs. Our salespeople are not experts on just paper, they are experts on our customers’ businesses. This gives them the unique insight to call on a team of our experts we have who can help our customers not only with their substrate supplies but also with taking some of their lean initiatives to the next level.

A good working relationship BR Printers was pleased with the end result and with Millcraft. “We have a good working partnership, Visit mymillcraft.com to order online.

in the industry

Multichannel marketing strategies Boost results by using traditional direct mail as part of multimedia marketing campaigns

ven in an age of new media marketing communications, paper is very much alive as a viable tool for targeting business and consumer prospects. That’s why traditional direct mail serves as the foundation for integrated marketing communications campaigns launched by MindFireInc on behalf of clients in higher education, financial services, fundraising and other business-to-business and business-toconsumer pursuits. “Abundant studies have shown that by marrying print with other communications channels in an integrated media campaign, advertisers can nurture a relationship with target audiences,” says Joseph Manos, executive vice president of sales and marketing at MindFireInc, a worldwide leader of marketing intelligence software and services that enable the creation and deployment of cross-media marketing campaigns. How effective is this marriage between paper and new media? “Multichannel marketing lets advertisers see a four fold to six fold increase in overall effectiveness and the responsiveness of prospects versus traditional

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

approaches,” says Manos. Traditional approaches might rely on a direct mail campaign alone, or perhaps in tandem with email communications. But that’s just a starting point, says Manos. “The average consumer is available on seven different channels,” he says. “If you’re only using direct mail and email, you’re missing five other ways of making contact.” An integrated approach To illustrate how several channels might work together, Manos describes a typical program, one that starts with personalized direct mail — mail communication that refers to the recipient by name. In addition to the product or service pitch, the communication might include an offer for a chance to win a premium (perhaps the latest iPad) by visiting the pURL microsite at, for example, SpecialOfferForJoeManos.com. Furthermore, the mailing might include a QR code, which can be scanned like a barcode by the recipient’s smartphone for quicker access to the site. The prospect could also be driven to the microsite

through a personalized email with a link and an incentive to visit. (Remember the iPad drawing?) Once at the pURL, “Dear Joe” might be asked to provide more information about his needs and again be encouraged to sign up to win the free iPad. There may also be the option of sharing the offer with Facebook friends for five more bonus chances to win. Additional microsite sales content might include white papers and third-party reviews, customer testimonials, a two-minute video demo and sales contact information. Such multichannel, multitouch campaigns are typically anchored by direct mail because advertisers can be confident that the prospect — whether commercial or consumer — will have access to at least one channel. The bottom line is that effective direct mail communications are as critical as ever, so make sure that the message, design, offer and mailing list are all on-target. And don’t overlook the appeal of the paper itself, which can be just as important as other direct mail elements. Just ask Steve Anderson, vice president of marketing for commercial printing at MeadWestvaco, a global packaging solutions firm.

“The feel of a paper stock can actually improve its credibility,” says Anderson, who was intrigued by a study conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and reported in Science magazine. Researchers found that an object’s texture, hardness and weight can influence judgment and decisionmaking. In one experiment, test subjects were given clipboards with job applicants’ resumes attached and asked to rate the candidates. While each test subject was reading the same resume, those fictional applicants whose resumes were attached to heavier, sturdier clipboards were rated highest. This got the company’s leadership thinking, says Anderson. MeadWestvaco commissioned an independent research firm to see if consumers would value sturdiness in the paper stock used for direct mail campaigns. Sure enough, the majority noticed and preferred the heavier, coated stock and perceived those mailings to be of a higher quality than those on a lighter stock. The concept was tested in the real world in a direct mail campaign for a Fortune 1000 company in the retail service industry. “Over six mailings we found a 38 percent increase in response for the sturdier stock mailer compared to the control mailing, which was on a traditional 100# cover,” says Anderson. Assigning an average value of $100 for every positive response, the response rate improvement equated to more than $25,000 in additional revenue generated from a single skid of the sturdier cover stock. So when crafting your next multichannel marketing campaign, don’t forget to include direct mail, and remember to consider every small touch in making the most of your mailing — including the weight and texture of your paper.

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in the industry

Debunking the myths about paper How the paper industry is fighting to restore its reputation as a positive force for global sustainability

he print and paper industry has come under fire in recent decades for links to air and water pollution, global deforestation and climate change — a myth that Phil Riebel, president of Two Phil Riebel Sides North America, says has been perpetuated by those outside the industry who simply don’t know the whole story behind it. Two Sides is committed to providing the facts about paper and its sustainability. In a recent conversation, Riebel addressed some common questions about why and how the anti-environment reputation developed and what steps the industry and advocacy organizations such as Two Sides are taking to reverse it.

Q. How did paper and print get such a bad name? Riebel: There is a valid history of certain poor environmental practices by paper mills decades ago, and unfortunately, despite noteworthy advances in sustainable manufacturing, printing and recycling technologies, that legacy still lives on, albeit undeservedly. To some extent, the industry has itself to blame for miscommunication about all of these positive changes. With the growing popularity of green campaigns aimed at curtailing paper usage and corporate America’s role in promoting the idea of the paperless office as something that helps the environment, people have really only been exposed to the negative messaging.

Q. So what’s the real story on the paper industry? Riebel: Pulp and paper represent one of the most regulated industries in the world. The paper industry works constantly to comply with government regulations, but many companies now do an excellent job of self-regulating as well. Mills strive to become 12

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

ISO 14001-compliant, along with achieving and maintaining forest-management certifications through organizations such as the Forest Stewardship Council®, (FSC®) the Programme for the Endorsement of Forestry Certifications (PEFC) and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®). As a result, there are a growing number of great sources for third-party data that verify the positive environmental impact of the industry. Reputable, voluntary metrics such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index — the longest-running, most widely recognized and respected global sustainability benchmark — have become key reference points in sustainability investing for both investors and companies.

Q. What is being done to educate the public? Riebel: Two Sides is among the organizations trying to reach the public with truthful, positive messages about the print and paper industry, while challenging misleading environmental claims. So far, we’ve gotten 33 major corporations to remove false messages from their marketing campaigns regarding the environmental benefits of their paperless office campaigns. It’s something toward which we’re constantly working. There are always two sides to every debate, and paper has a great environmental story to tell. Our newly updated Myths and Facts Booklet covers these misconceptions and provides a balanced account of paper and print’s real impacts. We’ve also aligned ourselves with the new Paper Check-off campaign (www.paperandpackaging.org), which is designed to reach the American public with positive messages about the environmental benefits of using paper and paperboard.

> For more facts about paper, check out

The importance of forms Paper forms are still vital to business in the digital age

emember the days of the old multipart forms used by gas stations, taxis and businesses all over the United States? Each color-coded part was separated by a black carbon slip — one copy for accounting, one for shipping, one for the customer, one for sales and one for, well, whatever department got the salmon-colored copy. How else was a company to conduct business and document the transactions it made? Given how fast the world is converting to electronic communications, these forms must all be gone by now — right? Not so fast. Digital communications have definitely changed a lot of things, but not everything. Digital hasn’t killed the paper form — it’s just forced it to evolve. In some areas of social and business interaction, modern technology has indeed just about replaced paper, says Tom Umenhofer, regional sales manager for Glatfelter Carbonless, a leading business forms producer based in York, Pennsylvania. For instance, federal patient privacy regulations encourage the use of electronic communications for inputting and accessing patient records. “Years ago, you’d sign a paper copy when you went to your doctor’s office. Now you’re signing a screen,” says Umenhofer. Some types of businesses, however, have actually increased the number of forms in use today.

Digital hasn’t killed the paper form — it’s just forced it to evolve.

There are many more very small and home-based businesses, including contractors and home party providers, that still operate with lower-tech procedures and need paper forms for cost estimates and sales receipts. This has created a steady demand for snap-out perforated carbonless forms, says Umenhofer. Steve Patton, vice president of operations for Highland Computer Forms, a leading Midwest business forms manufacturer based in Hillsboro, Ohio, says that while multipart forms have largely been replaced with single-pagers, today’s means of doing business electronically have greatly increased the number of transactions requiring such forms. The expansion of the Internet and the resulting explosion of e-commerce in both business and consumer categories are largely fueling these transactional forms. “Every time a business places an order on Amazon or Staples, it’s going to get a package delivered, along with multiple forms,” says Patton. This eruption of accompanying printed matter can include labels, packing lists, bills of lading, sales flyers, coupons and return documentation. Many of these transactional components couldn’t be relayed to the end customer in any other way but physical format. So while the total volume of forms has declined at about 9 percent annually in recent years because of a reduction in the total number of pages contained in each form, the number of transactions for which forms are needed has expanded, making this a continuing area of profit for forms printers in the digital age.

www.twosidesna.org/two-sides-fact-sheet. Visit mymillcraft.com to order online.

in the industry

in the family

Understanding

recycled paper

Paper pricing

What you need to know

ecycled papers come with many different labels and designations. To help make sense of it all, we talked to Giovanni Cattoni, Chief Executive Officer of Burgo North America, the North Giovanni Cattoni American distribution arm of Burgo Group, a major international paper company that produces, distributes and recycles paper. Burgo Group produced 2.5 million tons of graphic and specialty paper in 2014.

Q. What are the different types of recycled paper? Cattoni: There are two basic fiber cycles: preconsumer and post-consumer. Pre-consumer fiber comes from paper that never reaches the end consumer, for example the ends of paper rolls or clippings and other scraps collected in the factory after the manufacturing process. It might also come from magazines, books or other publications that were printed but never sold. Post-consumer fiber, on the other hand, is used paper collected from the enduser and reworked into a new product. The papers we recycle at home and at work — newspapers,

Recycled papers come with many different labels and designations.

magazines, office papers, mail — are examples of post-consumer fiber.

UPDATE

Trends that may affect future prices s we move into the middle months

increase from there, with maybe less than 30

of 2015, the industry as a whole will

days’ notice. On top of that, the lead time for

need to keep an eye on the volatility of

suppliers to get product out would rapidly

Q. How does the quality of papers made with recycled fiber compare to that of papers made with virgin fiber? Cattoni: Paper quality depends on the quality of

paper pricing.

fiber. The technology available now allows Burgo to produce recycled paper that is equal in quality to that made with virgin fiber, and both are part of a sustainable supply chain. Burgo produces a wide range of coated papers with a post-consumer content from 10 up to 100 percent. Chorus ART with 30 percent pcw has been specifically designed for the North American market; it is a testament of Burgo’s commitment in producing high-quality papers in a sustainable manner, the ideal choice for the environmentally conscious consumer.

ongoing consolidation of the industry. In addition

discussed adding capacity to deal with such

to the forthcoming $1.4 billion Verso purchase of

a spike in demand, which would help keep

NewPage, Canadian manufacturer Catalyst Paper

prices and lead times in check, but that doesn’t

recently entered the U.S. mix by announcing its

appear likely.

Q. What kinds of materials are recyclable? Cattoni: A wide range of materials can be recycled. Newspapers, white and colored writing paper, copy paper, office folders, notebooks, stationery, books and phone books can all be recycled. Mail products such as magazines, catalogs, postcards, coupon packets and envelopes are also recyclable, and packaging products such as cereal boxes, frozen food containers, detergent boxes, over-the-counter medication packaging, paper shopping bags and corrugated shipping boxes should not be overlooked.

Several major variables will continue to impact not only the price of paper but the rate at which prices shift. The biggest factor at work is the

intent to buy two of NewPage’s coated paper mills in Wisconsin and Maine. “The consolidation on the paper-manufacturing

increase. Orders that used to have a lead time of one or two weeks could get bumped out almost overnight to four to six weeks.” Paper manufacturers and distributors have

“The industry is declining at 3 to 5 percent per year,” Mlakar says. “Major growth isn’t really an option. Instead, you’ll see companies invest in

side is happening very quickly,” says Travis

the equipment they have and try to maximize

Mlakar, president of Millcraft. “There is a lot of

productivity there.”

capacity coming out of the system. So as supply

On the uncoated paper side, industry analysts

decreases, if there are changes in customer

are keeping an eye on a trade case filed in

demand, it can affect pricing very quickly.”

January of this year by domestic manufacturers

Complicating matters is the green movement,

against mills in China, Portugal, Brazil,

as many diverse industries are seeking more

Indonesia and Australia. The case alleges that

environmentally friendly manufacturing options,

unfair competitive advantages from overseas

particularly when it comes to biodegradable

manufacturers are keeping uncoated paper prices

packaging. One high-profile example is Dunkin’

artificially low.

Donuts, which is exploring the possibility of

“The domestic producers will allege that the

eliminating, or at least vastly reducing, its use

overseas competitors are getting government

of plastic and Styrofoam coffee cups in favor of

subsidies and benefit from advantages brought

the greener option — paper. If a major national

about by operating in non free trade markets like

company such as Dunkin’ Donuts were to lean

China,” Mlakar says. “If they have their way, the

entirely upon the shrinking paper industry for

U.S. government will get involved, and that could

its disposable cup supply, it could have a

impact how low uncoated paper prices stay. It’s

profound impact both on the industry and on

something to keep track of.”

all of its customers. “People would see that pricing would become very firm,” Mlakar says. “You could see prices 14

IN STOCK • Spring 2015

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