Major fire devastates Smurfit Kappa’s UK packaging plant but some operations resume

13 Jun 2022 --- Smurfit Kappa’s packaging plant in Birmingham, UK, caught fire last night, reportedly destroying 8,000 metric tons of cardboard and paper. The company’s London-listed shares were 2.2% lower at 07:30 BST today, set against a wider FTSE 100 index decline of 0.9%. 

Some operations at the plant have now been resumed, while the reasons for the fire are yet to be established. The fire was declared a major incident considering the amount of compressed cardboard that caught on fire.

The company has released the following statement: “At approximately 19.40 BST yesterday evening a fire broke out in an adjacent premises to the Smurfit Kappa SSK Paper Mill in Birmingham. High winds carried the fire which reached the mill’s recovered fiber yard.”

“Smurfit Kappa would like to thank both West Midlands Fire Service staff and the SSK team for their swift and professional response in controlling the fire within a few hours and ensuring the safety of all.”

“The paper mill itself is unaffected and we do not expect any material impact on production.”Last night’s fire reportedly destroyed 8,000 metric tons of compressed cardboard and paper.

No casualties
West Midlands Fire Service says more than 100 firefighters from across the Birmingham region managed to contain the blaze after they were alerted to it at 18:40 BST on Sunday. It confirms there were no reports of any casualties.

Smurfit Kappa’s Birmingham plant produces 500-700 metric tons of paper every day, which is later converted into cardboard boxes. It is one of two paper mills it operates in the UK.

The Irish company has the capacity to produce 8.3 million metric tons of paper and board a year globally and handle more than 7 million metric tons of recovered paper for recycling, its website says.

Surging corrugated packaging demand
Corrugated packaging suppliers have faced a demand surge for their products over the last two years due to the e-commerce boom during the COVID-19 pandemic and then the broader economic recovery.

Last month, Smurfit Kappa announced the construction of a new packaging plant in Morocco, marking the company’s first corrugated plant in the country. The company says the plant will enable it to supply innovative and environmentally sustainable packaging solutions quickly and efficiently to its local customer base. 

Meanwhile, the company launched a water-resistant paper that does not sacrifice recyclability. Branded AquaStop, the paper is part of the company’s TechniPaper portfolio, which consists of an array of high-performance papers designed to handle the most complex supply chains.

Also, Smurfit Kappa recently became the first vegan-certified packaging company after obtaining the Vegan Society trademark for corrugated solutions produced at its Markham Vale site in the UK. 

By Natalie Schwertheim