RACE TO THE TOP 25 CONVERTERS

Headnote

Packaging innovation, investments and mergers and acquisitions continue to define the top 25 converters in North America.

At first glance, you might think that this year's Top 25 Converters list doesn't look a whole lot different from last year's one. And you're right, there's not a ton of variation. But if you read on to see what each converter has been up to in the past year, it's evident that this list is going to look very different next year. The race is on.

On that note, we present our 2018 Top 25 Converters in North America feature, based offof sales information from the 2017 calendar year. Have a look!

1 BEMIS

2017 sales (in billions): $4

Neenah, Wisconsin

In 2017, Bemis developed a packaging film to produce individually-sized cocktail mix pouches for Bibo Barmaid's first-of-its-kind at-home cocktail machine. The end result was a pouch that's puncture-resistant and meets Bibo's requirements for burst values, shelf-life, portability and convenience. "Bemis is uniquely positioned to provide high-value add film solutions that meet the critical quality requirements of this project. We were able to bring together multiple technology solutions to create a durable film that provides excellent product compatibility, and extended shelf-life to meet consumer demands for portability and ease of use while at home or on-the-go," Bemis associate market manager, Peter Wright, said at the time.

Bemis

[phone]; www.bemis.com

2 BERRY GLOBAL

2017 sales (in billions): $2.9

Evansville, Indiana

"By changing our name to Berry Global we are portraying a more balanced view of who we are to our customers, our investors and ourselves." That's Tom Salmon, Berry CEO, explaining the key behind Berry's brand revamp that included a name change from Berry Plastics to Berry Global, a new logo and a new set of core company values. While the brand revamp was Berry's big news to come out of 2017, the company also acquired Clopay Plastic Products Company and joined The Recycling Partnership.

Berry Global

[phone]; www.berryglobal.com

3 SEALED AIR

2017 sales (in billions): $2.8·

Charlotte, North Carolina

Sealed Air's Charlotte, North Carolina, facilities were officially dedicated in May 2017, marking the first time in the company's history that its two main divisions and executives existed in a centralized headquarters. Sealed Air also...