Amcor increases flexible packaging prices on rising raw material costs

15-Sep-2010 - Last updated on 16-Sep-2010 at 10:11 GMT

Related tags Raw material Cost European union

Amcor said soaring raw material costs are behind its announcement to increase prices for most of its flexible packaging products.

The price rises, which came into effect on 15 September, are above those previously announced, said Amcor Flexibles Europe and Americas (AFEA).

Raw materials

“This increase is necessary due to steep raw material cost increases, particularly polyester-containing products,” said Javier Rojo, vice president of sales and marketing and Global Pharma.

But Amcor declined to provide FoodProductionDaily.com with any specific information on the extent of its price rises or quantify the raw material cost increases that had triggered them.

The company added that it would continue to take aggressive measures to keep costs under control and serve its customers in the “most efficient ways possible”, but again declined to explain how it would do this.

Amcor is the latest in slew of major industry players that have recently raised product prices. DuPont and Ineos Nova both introduced price increases at the start of the month. Ineos’ polystyrene products jumped by between €50 and €65 a tonne, while DuPont Packaging and Industrial Polymers said its Elvax and Elvaloy resins would jump by €100 and €150 per tonne respectively.

Baffled

British Polythene Industries told FoodProductionDaily.com at the end of last month that it was baffled by recent hikes in polymer raw material prices.

“Raw material costs have continued to perplex buyers in Western Europe,” said a company statement. “We experienced price increases every month of the first six months of 2010, while watching prices fall in North America and the Far East.”

It added that in June raw material costs were some US$300 per tonne lower in China than in Western Europe and, in some cases, shipped from the same European factories.

BPI chief executive John Langlands called on the European Commission to overhaul the current 6.9 per cent tariffs imposed on polymer imports into Europe.

He said was aware that suppliers were planning to push for price rises in September but was uncertain about whether these would be achieved.