Greif announces US$60/T price hike on recycled paperboard buyers

GLOBAL – Greif has confirmed price hikes for uncoated recycled paperboard and tube, core and protective packaging products from July 2026, pointing to escalating raw material, freight and adhesive expenses alongside strengthening market demand.

The industrial packaging giant will raise uncoated recycled paperboard prices by US$60 per short tonne. 

Tube and core products will jump by at least 6.5 percent. New orders and deliveries for paperboard face the increase from 6 July 2026, while tube and core shipments get the higher pricing from 13 July 2026. 

Greif, operating across more than 35 countries since 1877, is making the move as input costs continue their upward march.

Three Cost Drivers That Just Made Your Packaging More Expensive

Greif explained that the paperboard increase reflects swollen raw material and freight bills paired with rising buyer demand. 

The tube and core price jump follows climbing paperboard and adhesive costs, the two main ingredients in those products, along with pricier transport and stronger order books. 

A Middle Eastern converter importing recycled paperboard from Greif’s European network currently pays roughly €520 (US$560) per metric tonne. 

The July addition will add about €55 (US$59) to that baseline, squeezing margins further for packaging makers across the region.

How Greif Slashed US$1.76 Billion in Debt While Profits Crashed 32%

Despite the pricing power, Greif’s second fiscal quarter 2026 net income fell 32.3 percent to US$12.6 million from US$18.6 million a year earlier. 

Adjusted EBITDA, however, climbed 7.5 percent to US$156.8 million. 

The company slashed total debt by US$1.76 billion after using proceeds from its containerboard and timberlands business sales to repay US$1.86 billion. 

Those divestments, including a US$1.8 billion containerboard sale to Packaging Corporation of America finalized last year, have reshaped Greif’s portfolio.

Why the Middle East Conflict Is Now Part of Greif’s Cost Calculus

Greif CEO Ole Rosgaard said that the company was building for organic growth through operational execution and commercial discipline while remaining selective on targeted acquisitions. 

He warned that Greif was not yet seeing a demand inflection, and that geopolitical developments, including the ongoing Middle East conflict, continued to weigh on industrial activity. 

Consequently, he explained, the company was taking a more conservative outlook, focusing on cost control, cash generation and disciplined execution.

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