Sonoco

SONOCO

PACKAGING WITH A PURPOSE

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SONOCO

Sonoco brings more to packaging than the physical wrapping.

The company’s integrated solutions help define brand personalities, create unique customer experiences, and enhance the quality of products for people around the world. Hannah Barnett spoke to VP Global Environmental, Sustainability, & Technical Services Elizabeth Rhue and VP & General Manager, Paper & Fiber Supply, US/CAN, Palace Stepps to find out more.

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S

onoco was established 125 years ago

industrial and healthcare ranges, plus

in Hartsville, South Carolina, with 12

the Thermosafe division includes reusable

employees and one vision.

packaging, giving the company recyclable

“The company is rooted in small town

USA,” said Elizabeth Rhue, VP Global,

and reusable offerings.

In 2022, the company further expanded its

Environmental, Sustainability, & Technical

portfolio to include metal food and aerosol

Services. “Our CEO, Howard Coker, is fifth

cans – an acquisition that increased annual

generation to the founder, who, in 1899,

revenue to $7.3 billion. Sonoco now employs

wanted to build a company focused

20,000 employees across 34 countries.

on innovation.

“Sustainability has always been at our

Recycling with robots

core; we’ve been using recycled fiber in

One of Sonoco’s most innovative recent

our paper based products for well over

projects has been a partnership with AMP

100 years. We like to say we were sustain-

Robotics, which uses AI to sort, identify,

able before it was cool.”

and recover recyclable items. The robots

Indeed, producing paper cones instead

are programmed to identify different

of wooden ones for the textile industry

Sonoco products and ensure they are

was a significant early innovation for

properly sorted.

the company. Sonoco later expanded

“Essentially, any AMP robot in a Material

beyond paper into plastics and flexible

Recovery Facility (MRF) across the globe

packaging. This is in addition to the

could be programmed to recognize a par-

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SONOCO

I PROFILE

ticular packaging format,” said Ms. Rhue,

when establishing what is recyclable, too.

“so we can increase the likelihood that

“Sometimes we have consumers who are

packaging is properly recycled. It’s been

well – meaning and want to maximize

a great project for us, because it’s allowed

what they recycle, but don’t understand

us to open up the avenue of sortation for

some of the difficulties,” said Mr. Stepps.

particular packaging formats,” added

“For instance, the plastic cord from

Palace Stepps, VP & General Manager,

Christmas tree lights: that can wrap

Paper & Fiber Supply, US/CAN, who heads

around rotating equipment in our process,

up the recycling teams. “Generally, we

which can cause us to have to stop our pro-

focus on containers with the robots;

duction line.”

things that may be valuable or a little bit different in terms of shape, size, or mate-

Sustainable on all fronts

rial,” he explained. “The robotic neural

Sonoco has also recently increased its

network is clever and can focus on spe-

focus on paper based flexible packaging.

cific products, even if they’re discolored

This has meant developing a structure

or disfigured. The AMP robot is much

that maintains the appropriate shelf life

better than other sorting equipment at

and functionality of a product, but is made

identifying those materials.”

primarily out of paper, and can be recycled

One of the main challenges comes when sorting packaging that is made of mul-

in a kerbside recycling stream.

“We also have several initiatives on the

tiple materials. Education remains an

plastic side of our business,” Ms. Rhue

important tool in the wider community

added, “increasing the use of recycled

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content in our rigid plastic containers,

vert them to biogas or other lower emis-

minimizing the use of virgin plastics and

sion fuels.” Sonoco won an award

ensuring that we’re improving the sorta-

through American Forest & Paper

bility of containers at the MRF. For

Association (AF&PA) in 2023 for Sonoco’s

example, we are using NIR detectable

project to convert methane gas from its

black colorants in our rigid plastic trays.”

anaerobic digester into renewable nat-

The company also has several worldwide initiatives to reduce emissions via solar

ural gas.

Something that sets the company apart

projects at some of its facilities. In 2023,

is that it is highly self-sufficient. Running

it broke ground on two PV installations –

its own recycling facilities – in the U.S.

one in Texas, the other at corporate

and around the world – has allowed

headquarters in South Carolina.

Sonoco to become one of the largest

“We also continue to work on projects

recyclers in North America.

that drive energy efficiency in our facili-

This provides a usefully thorough, (and

ties,” said Ms. Rhue. “We are looking at

somewhat rare), cradle to grave aware-

boilers across our network, making sure

ness of sustainability. “We have a real

that they’re efficient and at ways to con-

understanding of how a packaging design

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SONOCO

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Sonoco’s 2030 Commitments •

25% reduction of Scope 1 and 2 emissions.

•

Reduce Scope 3 emissions in line with 2° Absolute Contraction Approach.

•

Reduce energy use by 8% at plants.

Conduct water risk studies at sites by 2024.

•

Implement Operation Clean Sweep by 2025.

can impact the ability of that package to be recycled at end of life,” Ms. Rhue

sufficiency comes into play again, too.

“One of the secrets to Sonoco’s success

explained: “and I think that gives us

is that we own a lot of the supply chain,”

a unique advantage that many of our

Mr. Stepps added, “and we are vertically

competitors do not have.”

integrated, meaning the recycling side feeds fibers into our paper business. I’m

Proactive partnerships

also responsible for adhesives; we supply

Like any effective global company, (espe-

our own adhesives, as well as our own

cially one operating on the scale that

paper and a host of other things across

Sonoco does), a strong relationship with

the integrated supply chain. Managing

suppliers is crucial. As Ms. Rhue explained:

the upstream materials means we can

“Our suppliers are a large part of our suc-

control the cost, and the availability to

cess. We ensure that they have a clear

some extent, and run our operations

understanding of our goals, objectives,

much more efficiently, as a result.”

and expectations, and we hold them

Looking ahead, Sonoco will continue to

accountable for bringing solutions to us

grow sustainably, though, according to

that correspond.”

Ms. Rhue that is not a proposition without

The company has also sustained long –

its own challenges: “There are questions

term relationships with suppliers, navi-

like: ‘How do we raise production and

gating difficult periods such as the Covid

bring in new business without increasing

pandemic: though the company’s self-

our environmental footprint?’ And we

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Elizabeth Rhue VP Global, Environmental, Sustainability, & Technical Services

Palace Stepps VP & General Manager, Paper & Fiber Supply, US/CAN

know we are a pretty energy intensive industry in terms of paper making. In some cases, the technology doesn’t exist yet to help us drive the emissions to the level that we would want.”

Ms. Rhue, who started her career at

Sonoco continues to stay ahead of

Sonoco as an R&D engineer working on

the sustainable curve, growing and

material development and design, has

evolving; something the company has

found the move into sustainability a ful-

always done. “We continue to reinvent

filling one, strengthened by her strong

ourselves,” Mr. Stepps concluded. “That’s

product knowledge. “The opportunity to

one of the things that attracted me to

mix business strategy with sustainability is

Sonoco from the start. As the demands

that sweet spot for me,” she said. “Whether

of the consumers who use our packaging

it’s a new package innovation, or a project

change, we keep innovating and growing

at one of our facilities, anything that helps

into different packaging platforms. We

to drive both a good business and a good

are a large, but highly nimble, focused,

environmental outcome is very fulfilling.”

and growing company.”

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