News

June 13, 2024

Graphic Packaging Hosts ZooBOTix Team from Kalamazoo Public Schools for Mill Tour

Graphic Packaging is proud to support the ZooBOTix team, Kalamazoo Public Schools’ first Robotics Club. We recently had the pleasure of hosting the team for a tour of our mill. The students had a great time learning about our manufacturing process and seeing our paper production in action.

Graphic Packaging is in awe of the incredible Kalamazoo Central, Linden Grove Middle School, Hillside Middle School, and Portage West Middle School students that comprise ZooBOTix. The club has accomplished many feats, including qualifying for the FRC World Championships for the second year in a row. We’re thrilled to be a ZooBOTix team supporter, and this year we donated $1,000 this year to help cover their club costs.

Thank you for the exciting visit, ZooBOTix!

March 18, 2024

Statement on Dismissal of Dancer v. USA

On March 15, 2024, a federal judge dismissed Dancer v. United States of America, an environmental lawsuit that was filed in June 2023 against Graphic Packaging and 21 other defendants, including the City of Kalamazoo, the State of Michigan, the United States of America and several federal, state and local officials. We appreciate the Court’s careful consideration of this case and recognition that the complaint lacked legal merit.   

Graphic Packaging and the other defendants had asked the Court to dismiss the case because it contained insufficient, improper and false allegations. The Court agreed. Earlier, the Court had granted Graphic Packaging’s request to strike from the case the completely baseless allegations against the company of environmental racism and corrupt coordination with a state elected official. In its order dismissing the case, the Court ordered the plaintiffs’ lawyer to show cause why he should not be sanctioned for filing a complaint with such unfounded and derogatory allegations.  

We take our community’s health and safety very seriously, and we take pride in our responsibility as a good neighbor, community partner and employer to 750 people at our Kalamazoo manufacturing facility. While we are pleased with the Court’s ruling and remain proud of our work and our record in Kalamazoo, we will continue to seek solutions to help improve the environment. We have invested millions of dollars in ongoing facility improvements and air monitoring equipment.  Since 2021, these investments have driven an 81% reduction in our hydrogen sulfide emissions levels, which were already under state limits. We will continue to work alongside city leaders and state and federal regulators to achieve further progress. However, we will also defend ourselves vigorously against false and frivolous claims. 

December 21, 2023

Graphic Packaging Video Celebrates its Hillside Courtyard Revitalization Project

Graphic Packaging is proud to share this video on the courtyard revitalization project we sponsored at Hillside Middle School. As mentioned by Principal McKissack in the video, the project involved updating two courtyards at Hillside into urban greenspaces.

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November 21, 2023

Graphic Packaging Supports Food Bank this Thanksgiving Holiday

As we kick off the holiday season, Graphic Packaging is proud to announce its donation to the Eastside Food Bank located inside the Youth for Christ Community Center. Graphic Packaging’s Kalamazoo mill has donated more than $1,200 worth of food and 50 turkeys, which will help 200 families put food on the table during the Thanksgiving holiday.

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August 25, 2023

Northside Ministerial Alliance Stands Against Gun Violence with 3rd Annual Community Carnival

Graphic Packaging is honored to be a sponsor of this year’s Northside Community Carnival. The annual event is free to the public and intended to unify, engage and encourage Northside residents. In 2022, event organizers changed the theme to an Anti-Gun Violence Community Carnival to raise awareness and stand against the evolving issue of gun violence. The Northside Ministerial Alliance, which hosts the carnival, involves dozens of community partners and vendors across the city.  

The Northside Ministerial Alliance (NMA) is made up of more than 40 churches in the Kalamazoo area and has been operating in the city for over 40 years. NMA works to strengthen families and promote a better quality of life for all in Kalamazoo.   

We hope to see you at this year’s Carnival on Saturday, August 26!

August 10, 2023

Graphic Packaging’s actions have driven H2S reductions, recent data shows

Graphic Packaging has reduced average hydrogen sulfide (H2S) readings at its Kalamazoo mill to 1 part per billion (ppb), according to Envirosuite monitoring data from the first half of 2023. These are readings from on-site monitors, before any H2S reaches the property line or the community, where the concentrations of H2S would be even lower.  

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July 17, 2023

Graphic Packaging Surpasses its Goal of Donating 150 Backpacks to Big Brothers Big Sisters

Since the beginning of May, Graphic Packaging’s Kalamazoo mill has been actively contributing to the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwest Michigan backpack drive. This meaningful initiative collects backpacks for “littles,” aged six to 16, who are part of the nonprofit organization’s programs. We are excited to share that we have proudly donated more than 150 backpacks to support this deserving cause.

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