The adage that a weak dollar is good for trade has not held up for U.S.-based paperboard and containerboard converters, according to a top industry consultant concerned that U.S. suppliers will continue to be mired in low profitability and performance.

Dow Chemical’s Bluewave technology, a long-discussed process that breaks down polymers into submicron particles, has finally entered the market as a driver of downgauged and lightweight packaging.

Crown Holdings is adding another dimension to the changing seafood packaging market by launching the first pigmented food can using a new coating process.

As the packaging industry finishes its mid-year earnings recaps, it is time to hand out report cards.  As documented here, the first half of the year brought mixed results; while no packaging supplier seemed to have a banner first half, some fared well in profits and some were able to hike sales.

Is private equity about to take a bumpy detour from investments in packaging companies while it sits out the recent spate of belt-tightening in bank credit?

While companies often perform in-house package development and testing, we are frequently seeing the tasks being outsourced.

Is there a looming crisis in PET packaging, or just an agonizing innovation lull between now and the time the next great wave of barrier technology washes over North America and Europe?

Wal-Mart must be lauded for taking a lighter approach with its suppliers on its sustainability initiatives than it did a few years ago with RFID.  In that case, Wal-Mart’s mandate brought an unease to a supply community that could not react quickly enough nor absorb associated costs.

Marco Polo might not agree, but the days of criss-crossing Asia to find riches are about to end.  Instead, packaging adventurers are looking toward Eastern and Central Europe and South America -- regions primed to explode after years of fizzling with expectations but wielding little bang.

The battle has already been joined.  Flexible bags and pouches have begun to encroach on the once-impenetrable market share held by rigid plastic containers, and many believe that the boundaries between rigid and flexible are coming down quickly.

The glass packaging industry had an interesting year in 2006.  While the market remained fairly flat and few noticeable conversions drove the industry forward, the segment was highly active on the marketing front, albeit with biased data.

Food and beverage applications may be the showiest sectors of packaging.  But the end category that might be most primed in 2007 for growth is medical and pharmaceutical packaging.

As with most consumer-generated attacks, it is best to be patient and wait it out.  Eventually, consumer groups and protesters move to another subject to harangue, leaving the former attack target in peace.

The decline in carbonated soft drink (CSD) sales in North America has come as no big surprise.  Vitamin water, low-carb milk, chai tea, reduced-calorie energy drinks, and nutraceutical supplements are populating retailer shelves and vending machines at the  expense of CSDs, the sales of which were off 0.2 percent in the United States in 2005 according to Beverage Digest.  Don’t expect a huge return of the soft drink anytime soon.