Mondi to invest at the Duino mill in Italy Sonoco’s latest paperbased packs on show

The latest versions of USbased Sonoco’s rigid paper containers are due to be shown at the Packaging Innovations & Empack show being held at the NEC in the UK from 15-16 February.

Mondi has completed its acquisition of the Duino mill near Trieste in Italy from the Burgo Group.

Around €200 million is to be invested by Mondi in converting the existing lightweight coated mechanical paper machine at the mill into a high-quality, cost-competitive recycled containerboard machine with an annual capacity of around 420,000 tonnes.

Close to two important export harbours, the mill is said to be ideally located to source paper for recycling, supply Mondi’s corrugated solutions plants in Central Europe and Turkey as well as to serve the growing local Italian market. The converted machine is expected to start-up in 2025.

“We are excited to welcome Duino mill to the Mondi Group and the opportunity this provides to grow our packaging business. We are committed to the longterm future of the mill and recognise its important role in the community and contribution to the local economy,” says Markus Gärtner, chief executive of Mondi Corrugated Packaging.

The €40 million deal to buy the mill was announced in August 2022.

Customers invited to meet the Valmet community

Technology group Valmet is holding its next Customer Days over three days from 29-31 March at the Tivoli Hotel & Congress Center in Copenhagen, Denmark

Valmet’s Customer Days, held bi-annually, bring together pulp, paper, and energy producers from all around the world. This year’s theme is ‘Forward to a carbon neutral future’.

Subjects under discussion will involve case studies with global customers that have improved their business to ensure future success and to reach their sustainability targets; Valmet’s offering to reduce CO2 emissions and other environmental impacts; a demonstration on what moving towards autonomous operations means in practice, demonstrations of tools such as simulators, digital twins and self-service analytics can empower mill or plant personnel to perform at their best; and the opportunity to meet colleagues and Valmet experts from around the world.

Along with the paper manufacturer’s EnviroCan and Greencan cylindrical packs, Sonoco’s Gravy paper-board drum, which received the Supply Chain Solution of the Year Award at the 2022 UK Packaging Awards, will be on show.

The EnviroCan (part of Sonoco’s EnviroSense range) with a paperboard end is made with recycled and recyclable paper fibres. The paperboard body is made of at least 95 per cent fibres with a minimum of 60 per cent recycled content and features a highly-effective oxygen and moisture barrier layer, which assures food safety and preserves shelf-life.

The wide variety of closures available for this range –including the latest paper lids for 73mm-diameter paper cans and sprinkler options – will also be showcased.

Greencan is a pack made of 92-98 per cent paperboard, with a wide range of barrier properties. It is available in range of shapes and sizes – from round, square or rectangular; to oval, oblong or triangular – and provides a recyclable, mono-material pack, with robust barrier properties.

Philip Brown, interim North Europe sales director at Sonoco Consumer Products Europe, comments: “After the success of previous years, we’re delighted to return to Packing Innovations again in 2023. We never stop innovating to improve both the performance and the sustainability of our solutions, so we were delighted to see one of our latest innovations recognised with a UK Packaging Award last year.”