Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/807384
1 10 / the tasting panel / april 2017 Packed for Success by Hana-Lee Sedgwick W hen you think of wine, paper packaging isn't necessarily the first thing that comes to mind; yet, paper packaging is a vital part of the wine business. Because of this, Smurfit Kappa is recognized as an important player in the wine industry. With more than 45,000 employees spread throughout 34 countries, Smurfit Kappa is one of the leading providers of paper-based packaging products in the world, providing solutions for everything from retail merchandise displays to cases and, you guessed it, bags in a box. Headquartered in Dublin, now with regional headquarters in Amsterdam and Miami, Smurfit Kappa started in 1934 with humble roots as a simple box production company. Over the next 30 years, the company steadily grew its portfolio of paper-based packaging solutions, doubling in size with the acquisi- tion of Temple Press Limited, and began to expand outside of Ireland. After acquiring operations in the U.K., Netherlands, Italy, Spain, France and Austria in the years following and undergoing strategic merg- ers throughout the Americas, in 2005, the company relaunched as Smurfit Kappa Group and has contin- ued to expand ever since. "We attribute our success and growth to our ability to build strategic alliances with our customers, anticipating their needs and those of the markets they are in," shares Manuel Alcala, Smurfit Kappa's Vice President, Pan American Sales. "We're also supported by an unrivalled portfolio of paper-packaging solu- tions, which is constantly updated with our market- leading innovations." Today, Smurfit Kappa's growth has resulted in 370 operations across the globe, where pro-active teams work universally to providing solutions to custom- ers in the food and drink sector, as well as those in agribusiness, consumer goods, aerospace, medical and automotive industries. With Smurfit Kappa's array of 100 percent renew- able paper-based products and cutting-edge design capabilities, it's no wonder more and more beverage Smurfit Kappa's Bag-in-Box product can help wineries and beverage companies reduce costs and risks asso- ciated with tainted products. SMURFIT KAPPA BRINGS BRANDS THE PACKAGING THEY NEED