Beyond The Headlines: Ardagh Glass expands beer bottle range, Sisecam acquires Ciner Group’s US shares

This week in industry news, Ardagh Glass Packaging-North America expanded its Heritage glass beer bottle portfolio and glass giant Sisecam purchased US soda ash industry stakes worth US$285 million. Meanwhile, the US Wholesale Sugar Flowers announced its plan to acquire a premium cake packaging business.

In brief: Product innovation and branding 

Ardagh Glass Packaging-North America, an operating business of Ardagh Group, expanded its 12 oz (355 ml) Heritage glass beer bottle portfolio by adding a new bottle color and closure option. The two newly introduced 12 oz Heritage bottles come in flint (clear) glass with a pry-off closure and amber (brown) glass with a twist-off closure.

Neopac’s Polyfoil MMB tubes used for Colgate’s Elmex toothpaste earned a Hungaropack 2024 Award for innovation and recyclability from the Hungarian Association of Packaging and Materials Handling. Neopac is a Switzerland-based global provider of pharma, beauty and oral care packaging. The award recognizes the Polyfoil MMB monomaterial barrier tubes used for the Colgate toothpaste brand Elmex.

In brief: Acquisitions 

Sisecam, the Turkish glass and chemicals company, acquired all of Ciner Group’s shares in the US soda ash industry. As a result of the deal, Sisecam now owns Pacific Soda, which manages an ongoing natural soda ash investment in the US and is expected to produce 5 million tons of natural soda ash annually. Sisecam also increased its stake in natural soda ash producer Sisecam Wyoming to 51%. The purchase will cost Sisecam over US$285 million.

Schütz signed an agreement with the National Plastic Factory Company to produce Eco Bulk Intermediate Bulk Containers.German industrial packaging company Schütz signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia's National Plastic Factory Company (NPF) to produce Eco Bulk Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBC) in the Gulf country. NPF will produce IBC with a filling volume of 1,000 L for the entire Gulf Cooperation Council region. A new factory will be constructed for this purpose near the eastern port city of Dammam. IBC are needed by filling companies in the chemical, oil and lubricants industries, as well as the food industry.

Retail industry player Fomento Económico Mexicano (FEMSA) completed the divestiture of its plastics solutions operations to AMMI, a leading diversified producer of sustainable plastic packaging and non-GMO corn, an affiliate of Milenio Capital. The cash-free, debt-free transaction amount was MX$3,165 million (US$155 million).

UFP Industries announced that its UFP Packaging affiliate purchased the assets of the pallets and mulch manufacturer C&L Wood Products, based in Alabama, US. C&L had a good year in 2024, reaching sales of US$24.8 million. The company will now operate as part of the UFP Packaging’s PalletOne business unit, which focuses on machine-built pallets. C&L’s leadership team, including President Henry Bowman and operations manager Frank Janek, will remain in the company.

Wholesale Sugar Flowers to acquire OLBAA, a brand specializing in cake packaging solutions.In brief: Foodservice packaging

US Wholesale Sugar Flowers, a leading provider of high-quality sugar flowers, toppings and decorating supplies, announced that it will acquire OLBAA, a brand specializing in cake packaging solutions. The move was said to broaden Wholesale Sugar Flowers’ product range to offer its customers premium cake decorating essentials. 

The US Henning Cheese company announced that it is updating its packaging and logo. The company said that its new branding uses a color palette that matches its flavor offerings and aims to make its cheeses more identifiable. The design also aims to reflect the company’s focus on innovation.