CANADA – Canadian sustainable packaging company Cascades is planning to permanently close the corrugator at its Belleville facility in Ontario, Canada.
The move is part of a set of optimization initiatives for the company’s containerboard packaging platform in Ontario.
The closure is due to take effect by early next month and will impact 31 of the plant’s 106 employees.
Cascades said that the shutdown will make the facility’s business model more sustainable as it will focus on converting activities as a high-volume, efficient and graphic sheet plant.
The company has pledged to reduce the impact on affected employees by allowing them to transfer to other business units within the company.
Employees will also receive other support for employees who cannot or do not choose to relocate to other plants.
Cascades Containerboard Packaging President and COO Charles Malo said: “With additional capacity generated by the strategic optimization of our network in Ontario in recent years, we have the ability to redeploy this production to other units in the region.
“By doing so, we will significantly reduce costs and refocus Belleville’s priorities on converting. This decision will position our platform for long-term success and further strengthen our service offering for our valued customers.”
Cascades provides sustainable and value-added solutions for packaging, hygiene and recovery applications.
The company operates nearly 80 production units across North America, employing around 10,000 colleagues.
Recyclability evaluation
Meanwhile, the company has announced that all of its consumer products packaging manufactured under the Cascades Fresh, Cascades E-Com Packaging Solutions, Cascades IMGN Retail Solutions and northbox brands have been submitted to How2Recycle for an evaluation of their recyclability potential.
How2Recycle is a standardized labeling system started by the Sustainable Packaging Coalition to clearly communicate packaging recycling instructions to the public based on rigorous protocols and market data.
Cascades has chosen to have the recyclability of the packaging it manufactures assessed, saving its customers the time and money required for this step.
Brand owners and retailers can request their recyclability labels directly from How2Recycle, without the need for prior testing by outside labs.
By providing its customers with pre-qualification letters, Cascades has simplified the process by confirming the recyclability of its packaging in advance. These pre-qualifications are valid in Canada and the United States1.
“This important and proactive measure increases transparency for our customers by providing them with reliable and verified information on recyclability and represents another progressive step in our ambitious Sustainability Action Plan,” said Mario Plourde, Cascades President and CEO.
“For nearly 60 years, Cascades has adopted a circular economy mindset and continues innovating to ensure every bit of material is used.”
Cascades ranked 18th among the 100 most responsible companies in the world by Corporate Knights, decided to undergo the How2Recycle assessment as part of its efforts to achieve one of the goals in its fourth Sustainability Action Plan: to ensure that 100% of its manufactured packaging is recyclable, compostable or reusable by 2030.
The Company wanted to gauge itself using a recognized methodology, based on multiple criteria and adapted to regional factors influencing the recyclability of packaging in the US and Canada.
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