Manufacturing: Graphic Packaging continues to grow steadily in Atlantic France

Formerly known as AR Packaging, the manufacturer of cardboard packaging solutions based in Cholet (Atlantic France) was acquired in November 2021 by the American group Graphic Packaging. This acquisition has made the Cholet site the leading supplier of paperboard packaging for the food and fast-food industries in the United States and Europe. The company is now targeting new markets and planning an expansion. 

Graphic Packaging is on a roll. With a net income of $66 million in the second quarter of 2022, versus $38 million in 2021, the company is steadily growing. This success is driven by a high demand for sustainability-supported, innovative consumer packaging solutions.

One of the main suppliers of paperboard packaging for the food industry

The American company counts 130 factories worldwide, 40 of which are in Europe. In line with the group, the Cholet site, which employs 200 people, is also seeing good financial results. 

Among the clients of the Cholet-based company are major brands such as Fleury Michon, Nestlé, Sodebo and McDonald’s. The factory supplies the 1,500 McDonald’s restaurants based in France, and is even one of the main suppliers of hamburger, nugget and salad boxes. Last year, the firm also invested in a new machine which produces greener packaging for the fast-food chain. 

Since last year, the Cholet site has also incorporated Nespresso as one of its customers. In the long term, the brand, which specialises in coffee pods, should account for 10% of the site’s turnover.

Up to twenty new hires each year

In total, 120 million packages leave the 18,000 sqm Cholet production site every month. “Most of the production goes to the French market,” says Olivier Moysan to local newspaper Ouest France. Thanks to its growth, the Cholet site is hiring between fifteen and twenty people a year for various positions, especially in production.