What Makes Three Global Paper Giants Truly Competitive?

In 2025, Smurfit Westrock reported net sales of US$31.179 billion and a net income margin of approximately 2.2%. International Paper, meanwhile, states in its public business overview that most competition takes place within roughly 250 miles, or about 400 kilometers, of a customer’s facility.

Research references: Annual results and customer service overview.

These two facts reveal a practical reality of competition in the paper industry: even a very large business must earn an adequate return, and even a global business must win orders at individual customer sites.

Chinese companies face a similar question: with advanced equipment and skilled teams, why do some products still compete mainly on price?

Meeting product specifications is the starting point. Earning customers’ continued preference is the business outcome to pursue.

The business strategies of Smurfit Westrock, International Paper, and Oji Holdings offer a useful perspective: how they coordinate resources, manufacturing, and specialist expertise, put those capabilities to work in customers’ products, and assess investments through business results.

Smurfit Westrock:Turning a Manufacturing Network into Product Capabilities

Smurfit Westrock’s 2025 annual report describes operations in 40 countries, with 57 paper mills, 450 converting plants, and 70 recovered fiber facilities.

Paper mills supply containerboard, paperboard, and other materials; converting plants turn them into packaging; and recovery facilities help return fiber to use. Together, this network provides capabilities across several stages, from materials to finished packaging.

Research reference: 2025 annual report.

The network’s value, however, must ultimately be demonstrated in specific products.

In the company’s Andersen EV charger packaging case study, the customer needed to protect high-value products while making handling, installation, and unpacking easier.

The development team designed packaging from technical specifications and used its Paper to Box tool to determine the minimum board caliper needed for strength and rigidity. The outer box and internal fittings were then matched to the requirements of use. Both charger models shared the same internal fitting design, creating consistency across the product range.

Research reference: Andersen packaging case study.

A customer’s problem cannot be solved simply by assuming that thicker board is better. Materials, structure, and conversion must work together to meet requirements for protection, handling, and brand presentation.

This approach gives customers reasons to assess a supplier beyond unit purchase price: Is the material used appropriately? Is the product protected reliably? Is the packaging easy to handle? Can delivery commitments be met consistently?

The cost of buying paper is only one part of the customer’s total cost of use.

For paper mills and packaging manufacturers, technical teams therefore need to understand more than specifications at the factory gate. They also need to know which properties matter once the paper becomes part of a customer’s product, and which investments can improve performance.

Scale still requires capital discipline. Smurfit Westrock reported approximately US$3.39 billion in net cash from operating activities and approximately US$2.19 billion in capital expenditure in 2025, a difference of around US$1.2 billion. During the same year, it also closed high-cost or inefficient capacity.

Research reference: 2025 full-year results.

Even industry leaders must decide which capabilities to expand and which assets to adjust. The number of factories provides a foundation, but it cannot replace that judgment.

International Paper:Competing Globally Means Serving Customers Locally

International Paper’s 2025 annual report lists net sales of US$23.634 billion and reports 159 converting and packaging plants in the United States as of the filing date. Its acquisition of DS Smith also expanded the group’s European packaging network.

Research reference: 2025 annual report.

Its stated competitive radius of roughly 400 kilometers gives globalization a more concrete meaning.

For a customer, a global supplier’s reputation matters, but daily concerns remain local: Will packaging arrive on time? Can the supplier respond to changes in specifications? Will problems be resolved quickly?

A lower purchase price may not reduce the customer’s total cost if it brings more production-line adjustments or delivery risk.

Once packaging is matched to a customer’s production lines and multiple facilities, switching suppliers requires specifications, production, and delivery arrangements to be validated again. Reliable service can turn a routine purchasing relationship into closer collaboration.

Research reference: Business transformation and customer service overview.

Scale takes a business into more markets; service keeps it close to its customers.

International Paper’s investment decisions also show how customer needs guide manufacturing. The company announced a US$250 million upgrade at its Riverdale containerboard mill in Selma, Alabama, to offer strategic customers lighter-weight, higher-performance grades.

Research reference: Investment and transformation overview.

This makes capacity expansion a more specific decision: Who will the new capabilities serve? What problems will they solve? How will they fit into customers’ converting operations and end uses?

At the same time, the group has been narrowing its portfolio. It completed the DS Smith acquisition in 2025 and the sale of its Global Cellulose Fibers business in January 2026, sharpening its focus on packaging.

Research references: Acquisition and business information; divestment completion announcement.

Expansion and divestment can serve the same purpose: directing limited capital and organizational capacity toward businesses that better fit the company.

This transformation still needs to prove itself in business results. International Paper reported a loss from continuing operations of approximately US$2.838 billion in 2025, including substantial goodwill impairment, accelerated depreciation, and restructuring charges. Its reported free cash flow, a non-GAAP measure, was negative US$159 million.

Research reference: Annual earnings and cash flow disclosures.

Customer networks and a focused portfolio are important capabilities. Whether they produce lasting returns depends on operational improvement and the results of capital investment.

Oji Holdings:Opening New Applications Through Resources and Materials Technology

For the full fiscal year ended March 2026, Oji Holdings reported group net sales of approximately JPY 1.862 trillion. Based on sales to external customers, Printing and Communications Media accounted for about 11.5% of the total, and Functional Materials for about 11.9%. Traditional paper grades alone no longer describe the scope of its business.

Research reference: Annual results and segment sales disclosures.

The group operates in pulp, forest plantations, energy, and wood processing, alongside corrugated containers, folding cartons, paper bags, and liquid packaging. It also applies its capabilities to specialty papers, imaging materials, adhesive products, and films.

Research reference: Business portfolio overview.

Upstream resources give a company greater influence over supply and costs. Materials and processing technologies help those resources serve different applications.

A concrete example comes from Oji’s March 2025 announcement: SILBIO ALBA, an aluminum-metallized paper produced by Oji F-Tex, was selected for coffee bean bags sold by GEOPACK to coffee roasters.

According to the company, the material combines barriers to oxygen, water vapor, and light. GEOPACK makes it into flat-bottom bags suited to upright shelf display and postal delivery. Oji supplies the material, while the bag manufacturer develops the packaging structure and application.

Research reference: Coffee bean packaging announcement.

For a bag of coffee, the customer considers more than the base paper price: moisture protection, aroma retention, display, and distribution also matter. Materials development and packaging conversion need to address these requirements together.

This case makes application development tangible: add the functions a customer needs to a paper substrate, then work with a converting partner to turn it into usable packaging.

Resources shape part of the cost; applications create new opportunities for value.

For Chinese companies, the useful question is what new products their existing paper grades, coating and converting capabilities, and customer experience could support. Matching Oji’s forest holdings is not a prerequisite.

Business expansion also needs financial discipline. In Oji’s latest completed fiscal year, operating profit fell 48.9% year on year, while net cash from operating activities was JPY 113.376 billion. A broad portfolio creates development opportunities, but it does not remove the challenges of cost, business cycles, and capital allocation.

Research reference: Annual earnings and cash flow disclosures.

Learning from Industry Leaders Starts with Knowing Where Your Strengths Can Make a Difference

The three companies follow different paths. Smurfit Westrock connects its manufacturing network with packaging development. International Paper focuses on packaging and regional customer service. Oji builds on accumulated resources and technology to expand into materials and applications.

Even the same strategic question can lead to different choices. International Paper is narrowing its business scope, while Oji operates across multiple materials businesses. More stages of production do not automatically mean a better business. What matters is whether the capabilities fit the company’s strengths, customer needs, and capital commitments.

For Chinese papermakers, coaters, and packaging manufacturers, the lesson is to understand how their own expertise can contribute to customers’ products, rather than to replicate the giants’ scale.

Base paper producers need to understand downstream converting. Coaters need to understand how the functional layer works with the base paper and forming process. Converters need to bring end-use requirements into material and process selection.

Technical specialists therefore need a role in defining and validating applications, as well as implementing projects once a direction has been chosen.

Cost reduction remains important. It is also worth giving technical teams access to customer requirements, application data, and trial facilities so they can develop new products that customers will keep choosing.

No single company needs to own every stage. Paper mills, materials companies, and converting partners can work toward a clear product objective, jointly verifying improvements in use and consistency in manufacturing.

Before the next round of investment, ask: What do customers need? Which problems can our strengths solve? How can the improvement generate a lasting return?

BIOTEN Packaging welcomes collaboration with papermakers, coaters, and converters to examine existing base paper strengths, functional materials, and equipment capabilities in specific applications. Starting with a familiar paper grade and a clearly defined use case, partners can turn collaboration into valuable products.

The capabilities worth expanding are those customers need, that can be delivered consistently, and that stand up to financial scrutiny.