paper, cardboard, packaging, paper machines, tissue, printing
Cepi’s 2025 Key Statistics Report highlights a European paper industry that is increasingly exposed to a slow and sustained erosion of its industrial base at a time when its contribution to Europe’s circular economy, climate goals, and strategic autonomy remains critical.
Like other manufacturing sectors and many national governments, the European pulp and paper industry has called on the European Commission to maintain the current EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) benchmark values for the 2026-2030 period. It could otherwise lose an annual €1 billion in decarbonisation investments.
UPM Specialty Materials, Michelman, and BOBST have joined forces to develop two validated paper-based packaging concepts for brands navigating the EU packaging rules, such as the Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD). By combining fiber-based materials, bio-based coatings, and coating line expertise, the three companies have built ready-to-implement structures that deliver strong barrier performance and heat sealability over a wide sealing window.
Cepi preliminary statistics for 2025 show European paper and board production decreased by 1.5%. The drop is similarly experienced by most global competitors. In Europe, the industry has capitalised on its leading position in bio-based and circular materials creating resilience.
The Confederation of European Paper Industries (Cepi) calls on the European Parliament to ratify of the EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement (EMPA), emphasising its potential to eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers and foster growth for European pulp and paper companies, which are some of the strongest exporters amongst EU manufacturing sectors.
It’s a material that we ask to carry a lot, both literally and metaphorically. When you need to send important information, you use paper documents. When you need to protect heavy or fragile items, you can pack them in heavyweight boxes made of corrugated board. And, on a deeper level, paper also carries the dyes, pigments, and messages that bring brands to life in their packaging, labels, and marketing collateral.
In spring 2025, UPM announced plans to permanently close its paper mill in Ettringen, Germany. The respective employee consultation process has been completed now. The closing impacts 189 employees.
Following the closure, UPM’s uncoated mechanical paper production capacity will be reduced by 270.000 tonnes annually. Graphic paper production in Ettringen will be discontinued on December 31, 2025. To ensure safe conditions at the mill following the closure, an after-care team will be installed.
Mondi, a global leader in sustainable packaging and paper, welcomed international customers and partners to celebrate the inauguration of its state-of-the-art paper machine at its Štětí mill in the Czech Republic.
Cepi calls on European Union Member States and EU Parliament to promptly ratify the EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement (EMPA), to ensure a level playing field and open new markets for the European pulp and paper industry.
With the demand for sustainability showing no signs of slowing down and brands and retailers under increasing pressure to move away from plastics wherever possible, paper is firmly back in the spotlight as the darling of the packaging industry.
Paper’s roots can be traced back to Ancient Egypt and the use of papyrus as a paper-like plant-based writing sheet. The first true papermaking process was documented in China during the Eastern Han period (25–220 AD), but it wasn’t until the 11th Century that papermaking was brought to Europe.
