Prices for materials used in packaging continue to rise. Among the most recent announcements of price increases are those from Sun Chemical, the world’s largest ink manufacturer, Valéron and Michelman. The increases are the result, they say, of rising energy, transportation and raw materials costs.

Sun Chemical North America, based in Parsippany, NJ, USA, will implement energy and material surcharges on inks effective July 14. A 10-cents-per-pound surcharge will be applied to news inks, directory inks, cold-set, heat-set, publication gravure, solvent packaging, and energy curing inks. Water based packaging inks will be subjected to a 6-cents-per-pound surcharge. The surcharges, the company notes, are in addition to any recently announced price increases.

“The unrelenting cost increases related to freight, raw materials, and the energy used to produce our products require the immediate implementation of this surcharge,” says Greg Lawson, vice president, sales. “We remain committed to providing our customers with the best color and performance value in these most challenging times.”

Valéron Strength Films, Houston, TX, USA, raised prices of its film substrates 5 percent on July 1, and has announced that on August 1 the price will rise another 4 percent. The company cites “increasing raw material, energy and transportation costs” as the reason for the increase.

Michelman, Cincinnati, OH, USA, says it will implement price increases ranging from 15 to 25 percent on coatings and additives across all product categories in the Americas region effective July 14.

Michelman CFO Alan Blake says, “Increases in the cost of our raw materials, our energy costs, and our transportation costs have been dramatic this year. The increases have been rapid and, as yet, unrelenting. While these price increases are unfortunate, our entire organization is committed to continually improving our products and services. We will also continue to provide those products and services at competitive prices.”

Michelman manufactures barrier, functional, and decorative coatings for flexible film packaging, paperboard, and corrugated boxes; and additives and modifiers for many industries, including coatings, inks, composites, and construction products.