Huhtamaki to sell its rigid plastic consumer goods business in Australia

Huhtamaki has agreed to sell its rigid plastic consumer goods business in Australia to Alto Manufacturing Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of Pact Group Pty Ltd. The annual net sales of the divested business is some AU$80 million and it currently employs some 330 people. The divested business includes three manufacturing units in Bankstown, Mulgrave and Wacol. The agreed value for the transaction is $52.7 million. The transaction is expected to be finalised in approximately two weeks.

"We are pleased to be able to finalise the strategic review of our rigid plastic consumer goods business for Australia's part approximately in a year from the strategy announcement," said Huhtamaki Oyj's CEO Jukka Moisio. "Pact Group already acquired our Australian EPS (expanded polystyrene) business and we feel that Pact Group is a good future owner for the rigid plastic consumer goods business in Australia."

The divested units serve multinational and local customers with dairy, ice-cream and edible fats packaging.

In Australia, Huhtamaki will continue its foodservice, moulded fibre and flexibles operations. Rigid paper and plastic packaging production in Windsor serving the local foodservice market, the rough moulded fibre packaging production in Preston and the flexibles sales unit in Waverly continue to support customers in strategic focus areas.

"Following this divestment, we are halfway through the strategic review in terms of net assets. We will continue to review our rigid plastic consumer goods operations in Europe. One possible outcome is a sale," Jukka Moisio recapped.