Mondi to Open Paper Bag Plant in Colombia

Leading global packaging and paper producer Mondi will open a new state-of-the-art paper bag factory in Cartagena, Colombia in January 2021. It will be Mondi's first operation in South America and will establish the group as a broad-based bag supplier with a significant local footprint as a global paper company. The new facility will enable Mondi to enhance and expand its services to better serve regional customers. South America is home to more than 250 cement plants that require two billion cement bags annually. Cartagena is a strong position for this new facility, established in a free trade zone that provides easy access to ports in Panama, the east coast of the United States, the Gulf of Mexico and other Caribbean ports. [caption id="attachment_114138" align="aligncenter"] Mondi will open its first paper bag factory in Colombia to serve South American customers. (Photo: Mondi, PR166)[/caption] Claudio Fedalto, Operations Director of Mondi Paper Bags, said "Our global network currently comprises 39 facilities in 22 countries. We are excited to expand our footprint to Colombia, helping us deliver innovative, sustainable and customer-focused paper packaging solutions to our South American customers who share our commitment to quality." Mondi Cartagena will commence high-performance paper bag production in January 2021. Customers in the chemical, food and cement sectors will benefit from a broad portfolio of paper bags optimized on-site to meet individual customer requirements. The facility has been designed to start with a single production line with an annual capacity of approximately 50 million bags. The facility will also create a number of local employment opportunities in the Cartagena region. Felipe Angel, Plant Manager of Mondi Cartagena, added "Despite the challenges brought by COVID-19, I am very satisfied with the extraordinary progress recorded by our new factory. The new facility will enable Mondi to continue taking important steps to better meet customer needs, and we are ready to expand production capacity if necessary."