Berry Global Announces 15 Plant Closures

Berry Global is closing 15 of its plastics plants, with no indication of which plants are to close. 

The plastics manufacturer has various locations, with headquarters in Evansville, IN. Plants around the US are located in 34 states including Nevada, Illinois, Arkansas, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Washington, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Ohio, Louisiana, Iowa, Oklahoma, Massachusetts, California, Indiana, Delaware, Virginia, Florida, South Dakota, Kentucky, Oregon, Arizona, Michigan, Maryland, Texas, Rhode Island, New Jersey, New York, Alabama, Minnesota, Tennessee, Kansas, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

In the company's 2nd quarter earnings call, Chairman and CEO Tom Salmon said the business had solid second quarter and first half results with adjusted earnings per share growth of 4% and 7%, respectively.

However, he went on to note that in the past several quarters, "we have seen supply chain constraints continue to ease, prioritized structural cost improvements, and continued our efforts to pivot our portfolio to high-value growth products across all of our businesses."

Announcing the closures, Salmon went on to say that Berry's cost actions include the "rationalizing of 15 facilities across the world, moving business to more efficient cost facilities, and other labor cost reductions from improved productivity." The cost savings initiatives are expected to see annualized cost savings of $115 million, and the company expects $70 million in fiscal 2023.

These internal actions helped to offset a 6% volume decline driven by destocking and general market softness.

The company report declines in sales in categories such as consumer packaging - international; consumer packaging - North America; health, hygiene and specialites; and engineered materials.

Berry Global plans to continue targeting key end markets like healthcare, beauty, and foodservice.