By Shefali Kapadia
When Sonoco announced plans to acquire European metal packaging specialist Eviosys in a nearly $4 billion deal this summer, the packaging giant made its intentions clear: It was betting big on metal food cans.
At a time when novel materials and formats are proliferating in packaging and food companies rely on innovation to drive sales in some areas, sources say utilitarian canned food remains attractive because it’s a relatively stable market with consistent growth.
Pre-acquisition, Sonoco was bringing in $1 billion in annual revenue from metal packaging in the U.S., including aerosols for household products, along with cans for vegetables, tomatoes and beans. Sonoco expects the deal will expand its total addressable market for metal packaging to $25 billion globally.
Competitors such as Crown Holdings (which is more focused on beverage cans) and Silgan see potential for growth in canned pet food and proteins.
A big reason packaging manufacturers are so confident in metal food cans is because their CPG customers have stuck with the material for decades. And many in the packaging industry don’t see that changing.
SHEFALI KAPADIA 