Huhtamaki took a significant step toward expanding its growth within the molded fiber industry, specifically for egg cartons and egg flats, on April 23 with the acquisition of Zellwin Farms in Zellwood, Fla. Now, 100 days into the integration, both companies are seeing a successful transition with a focus on safety, efficiency, and collaborative innovation.
"When we started working with the team in Zellwood, we found a very nimble, engaged and innovative workforce," said Larissa Larrabee, Huhtamaki Controller who is leading the transition team in Zellwood, Fla. "We have already learned so much from their ability to solve problems and innovate."
The former Zellwin Farms, now Huhtamaki Zellwood, has been serving egg producing customers throughout the Southeastern US from a single site for more than 20 years. It is a successful operation and obviously an attractive business that fits well with other recent Huhtamaki expansions.
"What we discovered early in the transition was that we had a common language and business," Marc Doiron, Head of Molded Fiber Operations, said." The Zellwood employees are focused on safety, qualityand we serve similar customers. As a combined company, we can take what is good and move towards great."
Bringing employees into the Huhtamaki family
Any acquisition brings a big change for the employees and a fair amount of unknown.
"Immediately following the acquisition, we received great support from Huhtamaki's HR, IT, Finance, Operations and Safety." said Christina Stewart, Zellwood Controller and a 10-year employee of the firm, who is co-leading the transition with Larrabee. "We appreciate that support and the speed with which everyone came together. It has helped everyone adapt and immediately alleviated concerns."
Making safety the top priority
The Zellwood team makes safety the top priority, like Huhtamaki, but the integration did require harmonization of best practices and a review of every aspect of the operation.
Doiron also drove home the safety message with employees by demonstrating Huhtamaki's core values of CARE DARE DELIVER.
"We want employees to know that a strong safety culture is paramount in all our locations. It's not just words," Doiron said. "We want them to take an extra minute before they begin work to think about safe behaviors and to make certain that they are working in a safe environment. We genuinely care about their safety, and that we deliver on our commitments."
Safety investments in the facility are already in place including more localized air-cooling units, loading dock safety procedure enhancements, improved access to critical PPE, and the identification and planning toward the elimination of safety risks across the facility.
The road ahead
The first 100 days set a solid foundation as the combined organizations recognize success depends on maintaining momentum and staying on the trajectory toward greatness.
For Zellwood, they will be able to leverage the resources of a global company, and legacy Huhtamaki can quickly use Zellwood's experience in egg packaging, a key component of the company's growth strategy.
