Greif invests in recycling operations

The Paper Packaging and Services (PPS) business of Greif, a Delaware, Ohio-based packaging producer, has announced what it says are two “major investments” into its recycling operations to support its growth strategy in sustainable paper packaging solutions.

The financial terms of the investment were not disclosed.

The company says it has opened an 81,000-square-foot paper recycling facility for collecting, processing and baling in Florence, Kentucky, which brings Greif’s total number of recycling facilities in North America to 19.

Greif also says it has more than doubled the size of its paper recycling facility in Nashville, Tennessee, to 72,000 square feet, a move the company says is to enhance efficiency and support accelerated growth.

“These exciting projects will help strengthen Greif’s PPS division and are an important part of our investment strategy,” says John Grinnell, vice president and general manager of the recycling group at Greif. “Together, they are expected to grow Greif’s fiber basket by more than 5,000 tons per month.

“The paper fiber recycling plants are located in close proximity to Greif-operated paperboard mills as well as other containerboard and recycled product manufacturers, and where greater growth opportunities are possible," he continues. "By positioning capacity closer to our suppliers and customers, we can better support their sustainability targets while aligning with our own environmental goals.”

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According to Greif, approximately 50 percent of the fiber collected through its recycling business is used to supply its containerboard mills in the production of paperboard and containerboard. The remaining 50 percent is sold to other U.S. and international recycled-paper product producers.

PPS also operates 14 paper mills and has 40 facilities across North America between its other business units: Core Choice, IPG and Adhesives.

Recycling Today has reached out to Greif for details on the investments.

The announcement follows a recent $13 million investment into Greif's Greenville County paper mill in South Carolina to increase production capacity. The facility uses recycled paperboard to produce spiral tubes and cores, and at the time of the announcement, the company said it expected the expansion—which will modernize the facility—to be completed sometime in November.