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Packaging ProductionThe packaging industry in KwaZulu-Natal is one of the
most dynamic, progressive and varied forms of
manufacturing. The firms in the industry are a mix of
large national and international conglomerates, many of
them vertically integrated into the markets they serve, or
with raw material suppliers, as well as many specialist or
niche suppliers of packaging to specific industries. The
materials include polyethylene, polypropylene, glass,
aluminium, plastics, paper, wood and corrugated board.
The packaging industry in KZN is situated mainly in
Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Ladysmith, with distribution
chains to all the beverage, beer, milk and food producers.
The primary producers of packaging materials (such as
plastic film and flexible and rigid materials) often
supply a number of distribution and marketing
organisations as well as making direct sales to larger
producers.
In addition, there are many companies engaged in the
fabrication of bags, punnets, cans, drums, bottles and
pre-formed and blow-moulded packaging bottles, inserts and
bases.
In KwaZulu-Natal there are also a number of specialist
producers of pressed aluminium-based packaging and film,
that distribute their products all over the country. Manufacture of steel drums, cans and pails takes place at
a large plant in Durban where approximately 14,000 tons of
rolled steel and tinned plate are received on road from
Gauteng and converted into more than 2.5 million
containers for oils, molasses and a range of industrial
applications.
There is a large glass container factory in Durban, and
other glass bottles are also imported into the province
from Gauteng.
Modern packaging has become very specialised and offers
almost unlimited options for protection of the product and
optimisation of the distribution chain.
The printing and labelling of packaging is another
specialised field that has grown more and more
sophisticated as advanced computerised capabilities are
used to achieve marketing advantage for consumer goods.
With supermarkets typically carrying 15,000 different
goods on their shelves, packaging must be very effective
in presenting the contents to attract buyers.
The breakdown of the basic types of packaging in the total
South African market, as classified by materials, is
plastics (37%), paper (35%), metal (19%), glass (7%) and
other (1.2%), and it can be assumed that KwaZulu-Natal
has a similar profile.
According to industry sources, the total packaging market
in South Africa, including packaging for exports amounts
to 3.0 million tons of materials with the weights of
different categories being: glass (800,000 tons), metal
(400,000 tons), plastic (600,000 tons) and paper
(1,200,000 tons), with other packaging making up the
balance.
Packaging Factory
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Approximately 90% of packaging used by industries in
South Africa, is made up as follows;
- Food 30%
- Beverages 29%
- Industry and Agriculture 21%
- Dairy 4%
- Household products 5.7%
The remaining users are imports (0.8%), exports (2.6%),
healthcare, publishing, tobacco etc.
In KwaZulu-Natal the packaging usage by industries is
dominated by the beverage, beer, dairy, tropical fruit,
vegetable canning and meat packers.
Retail packing used for pharmaceuticals, household goods
and the whole range of packed food products makes up about
30% of the total. Transport in the Packaging IndustryThe distribution of packaging manufactured for the whole
range of industries using packaging in KwaZulu-Natal is
generally performed by the manufacturers, and is almost
totally by road. The demand for packaging for fruit is seasonal, and large
stocks are built up in advance of the season, both at
warehouses and on the premises of the processing companies.
It can be estimated that the total amount of packaging
used in KwaZulu-Natal is about 900,000 tons, including
bottles and cans. All this material is double handled,
first to the manufacturers and processors, and then by
distribution to points of sale or to the ports for export.
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