SWEDEN -- Metsä Board says it has started up a new folding boxboard production line at its Husum mill in Sweden.

The company is aiming the 400,000 t/a volume of the production line at the Americas, as well as at food service end-uses such as cups, plates and trays globally.

"Metsä Board is well known for its high-quality, lightweight folding boxboards, used widely in packaging globally. Thanks to the new production line and our recent product development, we are now able to respond to food service packaging requirements and demand better than ever before," CEO Mika Joukio said.

Several suppliers have brought their best expertise to the production line project from planning to start-up. During the actual installation phase of the folding boxboard machine, spanning from mid-October until January, over a thousand external workers were employed at Husum. After the start-up, the target is to assure smooth running and high product quality as soon as possible.

The folding boxboard machine BM1, supplied by Valmet, is the most significant part of the Euro 170 million investment programme carried out at Metsä Board's Husum mill site. As part of the programme, enhancements have also been made at the pulp mill and the mill site's own port. As a whole this investment programme completes the company's transformation process to a pure paperboard company.

Last November, Metsä Board also announced it is investing an additional Euro 38 million in a new extrusion coating line and related infrastructure in Husum. This line will be taken into use at the beginning of 2017.