Christmas: why a shortage of cardboard packaging cannot be ruled out

Maud Descamps 6:11 am, November 3, 2021

DECRYPTION

After wood, aluminum, or even automotive semiconductors, are we going to run out of cardboard packaging for the end-of-year celebrations?

Since the health crisis, the price of cardboard has soared at the same time as demand has climbed.

Some manufacturers of toys, cosmetics or chocolates are wondering how they are going to pack their merchandise for the Christmas period.

Increase in starch, paper, energy ...

This is the case of the chocolatier Jeff de Bruges, as its founder Philippe Jambon explains at the microphone of Europe 1: "We don't make our chocolates in Asia, but we make a certain number of our packaging and we are in flux. very tense. The boats are two, three or four weeks late, "laments the business manager, guest of

, Tuesday.

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Since the beginning of the year, the price of cardboard has been soaring due to the rise in the prices of raw materials such as starch, paper, inks but also energy.

For corrugated cardboard, used to protect the goods in packages, "we are in the fourth wave of price increases since January", recently explained one of the market leaders at Europe 1, or 40% of increase.

Customers want more virtuous packaging

Demand was strongly fueled by the strong economic recovery, but not only.

"There are more and more transfers from plastic packaging to cardboard packaging, driven by regulations but also by the choice of consumers who prefer their products to be packaged in packaging that is more virtuous for the environment" , notes Jean-Christophe Bugeon, CEO of the packaging company Smurfit Kappa.

This price increase also affects the boxboard used in the food industry for pasta or cereals.

Inflation is finally worrying toy manufacturers like Playmobil, which could run out of packaging during the holiday season.