The Sun Paper has formed a strategic partnership with Metsä Fibre which Hongxin Li speaks very highly of.
Consumers perceive fibre-based materials as environ- mentally friendly. However, whether fibre-based materials will get a bigger market share in the future will depend on different key elements such as product performance and affordability. “China is not only a consumer of high-end coated card- board products, but also a key exporter. China provides high-quality cardboard made of environmentally friendly pulp to the rest of the world. It’s either FSC certified or PEFC certified. I think it has market opportunities glob- ally,” McClay says. He believes that more and more Chinese organizations are taking an interest in high-quality cardboard. For in- stance, the Sun Paper Group has strict quality control in its products, including the selection of pulp suppliers. The Sun Paper Group has been working with Metsä Fibre for more than 13 years and formed a strategic part- nership which Hongxin Li speaks very highly of. He says that the Sun Paper Group is dedicated to working with sustainable and stable suppliers, so as to serve clients with good-quality products. He is convinced that Metsä Fibre is an organization with a great culture and reputation. CHANGES IN THE FUTURE SUPPLY In the past ten years, the growth of the cardboard industry in China has been slowing down at a rate of around two per cent annually. “This is related to the government ban on gifts and the declining cigarette market. However, in the pharmaceuti-
cal and the cosmetics and alcohol segments, growth could reach five per cent. In 2018, there were 2700 paper and board producing companies in China,” says Brian Mc- Clay. Overcapacity is a major challenge in China’s supply mar- ket. This makes the issue more pressing. The government’s ban on importing recycled paper also affects production in the low-end market. “These suppliers are in deep trouble. Many small-sized manufacturers have closed down and many more will do so, because they don’t have access to competitive imported fibre,” McClay comments. He believes this policy will make the role of bigger paper producers more significant. “Chinese-based producers will become even more de- pendent on imported virgin and recovered paper pulp, and they will need to expand and increase their global wood fibre supply chains.” This move could also have a positive impact on the envi- ronment since big companies tend to have more advanced environmental protection policies and practices. “A rationalized cartonboard sector, with fewer but big- ger and more efficient producers, should become an in- creasingly important partner for global pulp suppliers,” McClay says. “It might even help reduce pulp market volatility in the future with its potentially more stable and larger-volume buying dynamics. For sure, a win-win result for the entire pulp-cartonboard supply chain.” •
COMMENT ”Sun Paper and Metsä Fibre have been business partners for a very long time and we share a lot of similarities. When you visit the Sun Paper HQ, you immediately feel people at every level of the company are taken care of. It is easy to communicate with everybody, just like in Metsä Fibre. In our business, solving challenges makes us more united. We help each other succeed in the future. What else could you wish for from a business partner?” Harri Vertanen, VP Sales Asia, Metsä Fibre
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