Jun 8 2005
The first quarter’s shipments of aluminium foil showed a stable start to the year. According to the European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA), the sales continued on a high level with an increase of 0.2 percent to 212,100 tons compared to 211,500 tons to the previous year.
With a strong growth of 11 % the sales were driven by the exports to countries outside the EAFA region* while the shipments inside this region decreased slightly by 1.9 percent. These developments do not consider the ongoing trend of down gauging and underline the global leadership of the European foil industry in terms of quality and competitiveness.
Approximately three quarters of aluminium foil is used in packaging where its characteristics of strength, formability and barrier properties have made it an essential part of many flexible packaging and container applications. The number of new products that feature innovative uses of alufoil based packaging indicates a healthy future for the material. Other uses of aluminium foil include automotive and other heat exchange components, insulation material and other industrial applications.
With more than 120 members EAFA is the international body that represents the interests of the major rollers, converters, household foil rewinders and container manufacturers in Europe. Full details of members and further news and information about aluminium foil, its characteristics and applications can be found on the EAFA website www.alufoil.org.
http://www.alufoil.org