Packaging Shortage Hits Food Makers

Packaging costs for food makers are spiking, the result of higher prices for recycled paper, containerboard and corn, Bloomberg reports.

Big paper companies, the article says, haven’t been able to keep up with demand. This is causing meat producers, as one example, to pay “way over what whey would normally pay or they are seeing shortages of packaging just because this market is so hot,” according to one Rabobank supply-chain analyst.

Containerboard used to make corrugated boxes has jumped a whopping 17 percent since November. Coated recycled board, which is used to make cereal boxes, is up about 8 percent during the same time period. Corn, an ingredient in the starch that’s used in the glue that binds containers, is also on the rise.

The article explains that higher prices for these materials are having a downmarket effect, slowing product introductions and contributing to rising costs for end consumers.

Read more at Bloomberg.