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Packaging 1996
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The information below comes from the UK Activity Report.
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The government is to initially exempt companies with turnover under £5m from proposed recycling rules for the packaging industry. 19-Dec-1996 Rexam, the packaging group, is planning to sell about 20 businesses, representing about 12% of turnover, in order to restore profitability. 19-Dec-1996 Bunzl is discussing the acquisition of American Filtrona, the bonded fibres business, for about £50m. 14-Dec-1996 Blugilt, the Melton Medes subsidiary, is to start making a revolutionary plastic pallet in Bolton next March, claiming to have solved the problem of plastic not being strong enough to carry heavy loads. 11-Dec-1996 Field Group, the carton maker, is planning a £25m capital expenditure programme during this financial year to invest in new machinery to meet rising demand. 26-Nov-1996 Waddington, the food services and packaging company, is to increase capital expenditure to £40m this year in order to cope with rising demand, with £6m going on its US food services business for the supply of ready cooked meals to Boston Markets. 22-Nov-1996 The UK recycles about 16% of its steel cans, compared to a 45% average in the EU, according to the Association of European Producers for Packaging Steel. 18-Oct-1996 Macfarlane Group is acquiring Saranne Packaging, the converter of film products, for £3.3m. 05-Oct-1996 ASW Holdings is looking to sell its metal recycling business, which employs 250 people and has 12 sites, in order to reduce debt. 04-Oct-1996 Capital Industries has acquired Panoval Label, the Swiss-based maker of laminated paper products for packaging, for £9m. 20-Sep-1996 Aerosol production in the UK rose 20% last year to 1.2bn units, due to the fact that many major manufacturers have centralised their production in the UK, according to the British Aerosol Manufacturers Association. 11-Sep-1996 Rexam, the packaging, printing and coated products group, is looking to sell off 15-20 underperforming companies with combined sales of up to £300m. 11-Sep-1996 British Polythene Industries is to double output from its Chinese factory this year to 8,000 tonnes a year, as part of a £20m capital expenditure plan. 10-Sep-1996 Macfarlane Group, the Glasgow-based packaging concern, is planning to make a small acquisition next month, followed by two more acquisitions later this year. 31-Aug-1996 GEI International has sold Drum Closures, the maker of metal closing rings for drums, for £3.2m. 13-Aug-1996 The government has now announced details of the scheme agreed with industry which will require companies to either arrange for, or pay for, the recovery of a proportion of packaging materials used. 12-Jul-1996 Low & Bonar, the packaging group, is to invest up to £30m this year on improving manufacturing processes. 09-Jul-1996 Tinsley Robor, the packaging supplier to the publishing sector, is raising £11m in a rights issue to fund investment and expansion. 26-Jun-1996 Norcros is to delay the planned sale of its remaining paper and packaging operations, Autotype and Norprint, and will instead concentrate on improving their profitability. 21-Jun-1996 The government has agreed a shared producer responsibility scheme with industry to enable the UK to meet EU directives that require companies to recover 50% of their packaging waste by the year 2001. 19-Jun-1996 Bunzl is acquiring Jedco Paper, the distributor of paper and plastic disposable products based in Pennsylvania. 19-Jun-1996 Field, the carton maker, is planning capital expenditure of £17m this year, and is looking to acquire companies in precision printing cartons and labels in both the UK and continental Europe. 11-Jun-1996 John Waddington expects to make further acquisitions in packaging and printing this year and has set aside £30m for investment. 06-Jun-1996 BTR has acquired a 70% stake in Beijing Greatwall Plastics Company, which makes plastic food and drink containers in China, for £5.8m. 09-May-1996 CA Coutts, the point of sale and packaging company, plans to float on the Alternative Investment Market, raising up to £3m. 29-Apr-1996 Negotiators now think they are unlikely to meet the EU deadline of June 30 for agreeing an industry-run system that will meet European targets for recycling. 25-Apr-1996 James Crean, the Irish holding company, plans to sell Inishtech, its printing and packaging operation, this year. 23-Apr-1996 Bodycote, the metal technology and packaging concern, is planning to expand across Europe and America by expansion, and will also invest £24m this year on plant and equipment. 19-Apr-1996 The European Parliament has approved a six-year grace period for a new pricing system in shops, which involves products being priced per unit of volume or weight. 19-Apr-1996 Sidlaw is to close it food-packaging plant in Washington, Tyne and Wear, with most of the production being transferred to other factories. 17-Apr-1996 MY Holdings, the packaging company, has won a contract to supply Pharmacia & Upjohn, the Swedish pharmaceuticals concern, with a new packaging kit system which enables cartons, labels and leaflets to be sourced from a single supplier. 16-Apr-1996 Low & Bonar has withdrawn from discussions to buy Rotonics Manufacturing, the plastic rotational moulding concern, as Rotonics has started discussions with another company that is offering a higher price. 10-Apr-1996 Recycling costs for packaging in domestic waste have been found to be at least ten times less than previously thought according to a study by the Institute of Grocery Distribution. 02-Apr-1996 Macfarlane Group is considering the acquisitions of some small packaging companies and also plans to spend £6m on new packaging plants. 29-Mar-1996 Boxmore International, the packaging maker currently quoted on the Unlisted Securities Market, is to seek an official listing in May. 27-Mar-1996 Capital Industries, the packaging concern, has warned that profits at Coppice, which makes meat pie containers, could be hit by the BSE scare. 27-Mar-1996 ILP, the Irish packaging company that specialises in the computer industry, is to float in London this month to raise £4.5m to expand production facilities. 21-Mar-1996 Rexam, the paper and packaging concern, plans to expand in emerging markets this year, especially India, mainly through organic growth. 20-Mar-1996 The National Consumer Council is campaigning for a new code of practice for claims made on packaging, so that false or exaggerated claims can be dealt with in a similar way to those made in adverts. 16-Mar-1996 Molins has developed the machine which makes the tetrahedral tea bags to be launched by PG Tips. 16-Mar-1996 ILP Group, the Irish packaging company, is to float in London this month, and hopes to raise £4.5m to fund expansion. 13-Mar-1996 Arjo Wiggins Appleton is conducting a major review of its businesses which could result in some significant sales, possibly including its carbonless paper operation. 08-Mar-1996 The environment secretary is to announce new regulations this month to comply with European packaging recycling targets, which will involve an organisation being formed to collect fees from industry to fund the recycling. 05-Mar-1996 Kimberly Clark is cutting 300 jobs at its paper mill in Maidstone, Kent. 22-Feb-1996 Low & Bonar has offered $33m for Rotonics Manufacturing, the US rotational mouldings concern, in order to increase its share of the US plastics market. 20-Feb-1996 Jefferson Smurfit has bought a paper production factory at Sorpel in Portugual, and is looking to buy a second plant near Porto. 14-Feb-1996 British Aluminium, the new company formed by the sale of Alcan's downstream operations in the UK, plans a flotation within five years. 13-Feb-1996 Jefferson Smurfit has appointed Albert Reynolds, the former Irish prime minister, to its board. 06-Feb-1996 Norcros is looking to sell the components of its printing and packaging division to two or three buyers, as its seems unlikely it will find one buyer for the whole division due to the differing nature of the businesses. 05-Feb-1996 UK Paper has opened a £43m office waste recycling plant in Sittingbourne, and has forecast an upturn in paper demand later this year. 27-Jan-1996 Alcan Aluminium is planning to sell 12 UK aluminium businesses to a new company set up by a former regional MD. 22-Jan-1996 Kimberly Clark is to sell its Prudhoe plant and some of its UK tissue brands in order to gain European approval for its takeover of Scott Paper. 17-Jan-1996 Arjo Wiggins Appleton is restructuring by closing a paper plant in Grenoble and cutting 260 jobs in the UK, 235 in France, 180 in Belgium and 15 in Germany. 16-Jan-1996 Carnaud MetalBox is putting up aerosol can prices by 9%. 13-Jan-1996 The information below comes from the UK Activity Report. 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