Sappi Europe will increase prices of all of its Packaging and Speciality paper grades by 7%-11%, valid for deliveries from 1 April 2021.

In a statement, the paper manufacturer said: “Sharply rising input costs, particularly relevant to pulp and energy in combination with very high freight rates due to global logistic constraints make price increases unavoidable.

“The Sappi sales team will be in contact with its customers to discuss the detail and support the implementation, taking into account individual existing agreements.”

In January the company had already announced an increase to the price of its coated and uncoated woodfree paper grades by 8%-10% across Europe. This increase, on sheets and reels, was due to be implemented “by 1 March at the latest”.

Separately, Flint Group Packaging said it intends to increase the prices of its ink and coating products, also effective as of 1 April 2021, though specifics on the increases were not available at the time of writing.

The company said it is facing “an extraordinarily turbulent set of supply chain conditions, exacerbated by the global pandemic” and that its costs are increasing and supply is tightening across almost all procurement categories.

Flint Group Packaging Inks president Doug Aldred said: “The unusual set of supply chain conditions currently witnessed are some of the most severe I have seen.

“Our business is facing substantial cost and availability headwinds, across multiple raw material categories. Resins, solvents and pigments, including titanium dioxide, are particularly problematic.”

The company said it continues to collaborate with all of its global supply chain partners in order to mitigate as many negative effects as possible. However, recent upstream force majeure announcements and the acute global freight imbalance is impeding some of its corrective actions.

“Regrettably, despite our tenacious efforts to offset cost and risk for our valued customers, the pronounced and prolonged pressure – experienced in some categories since mid-2020 – has forced us to act,” said Emmanuel Bareaud, president of Flint Group Narrow Web.

“Some raw materials, such as UV resins, additives and pigments, are reaching cost peaks not witnessed in the last ten years or more.”

The company said its local sales representatives will soon be in contact with customers to discuss the effect of these adjustments.