Huhtamaki, Finland, has agreed to establish a joint venture with Smith Anderson Group Ltd., one of Europe's leading paper bag suppliers, to manufacture and sell foodservice paper bags in Eastern Europe. The joint venture will start manufacturing paper bags at Huhtamaki's facility in Czeladz, Poland. Manufacturing operations are expected to begin during Q1 2018. 

Huhtamaki currently manufactures paper bags in Russia only and this initiative further strengthens its position as a one-stop-shop to foodservice customers.

As the majority shareholder, Huhtamaki will consolidate the joint venture company as a subsidiary in the Group's financial reporting. The business will be reported as part of the Foodservice Europe-Asia-Oceania business segment but will not have a significant impact on the segment's net sales initially.

Huhtamaki is a global specialist in packaging for food and drink. With a network of 78 manufacturing units and additional 24 sales-only offices in altogether 34 countries, the company is well placed to support its customers' growth wherever they operate. Mastering three distinctive packaging technologies, approximately 17,600 employees develop and make packaging that helps products reach more people, more easily. In 2016 Huhtamaki’s net sales totaled EUR 2.9 billion. Additional information is available online.