“The deliveries of the European foil rolling industry are very stable at present or even showing slight growth.” Stefan Glimm, Executive Director, EAFA - European Aluminium Foil Association e.V.

Being an Information and business portal for the aluminium value chain, AlCircle has long been associated with European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA) as news associate. The European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA) is the international body representing the aluminium foil, closure and packaging industry. Very recently, just before the Aluminium 2014 Exhibition, AlCircle has conducted an interview with Stefan Glimm, Executive Director, EAFA. Mr. Glimm is an economist with more than 30 years of experience working in national, European and global organizations in the field of sustainability, energy policy and downstream aluminium. He shared with AlCircle some significant insight into the aluminium foil industry, sustainability concerns and the future outlook for aluminium applications.

Excerpts from the interview:

AlCircle: Please tell us in brief about the main objectives and the functional areas of the European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA)?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: The European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA) is the international body representing companies engaged in the rolling and rewinding of alufoil and in the manufacture of aluminium closures, alufoil semi-rigid containers and of all kind of flexible packaging. We have more than 100 member companies in Western, Central and Eastern Europe. Our activities include the compilation and sharing of statistical information, market research, generic PR, and promoting aluminium foil and developing the interests of the foil manufacturing and converting industry with third parties. Sustainability issues are high on the agenda for both aluminium foil and flexible packaging. Furthermore, EAFA is active in promoting the European foil industry internationally and creating relationships with sister associations around the globe.

AlCircle: Could you tell us in brief about the Aluminium Foil industry, the total alufoil production in Europe and the total business volume of the same?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: The aluminium foil industry has an interesting position within the global aluminium industry where the main markets are packaging for FMCG and technical applications. Almost 10% of the global annual primary production is converted into foil and there are many different applications for this material and therefore many different customers’ needs. In Europe the annual foil production is around 840,000 tonnes. The other main production markets are China, the rest of Asia, North America and Brazil.

AlCircle: Tell us in brief about the EAFA aluminium Closures Group. Do you think that aluminium closure industry can contribute significantly towards boosting aluminium demand?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: Aluminium closures are mainly used for spirits, wine, premium waters and olive oils, as well as some cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. The aluminium closures manufacturers are in direct and heavy competition with the cork industry. Within EAFA they found a platform to promote their products and show the benefits of aluminium closures for the supply chain, for example avoiding product loss due to cork taint plus the convenience aspects for the consumer.

The aluminium closures markets will never absorb main volumes of the primary production but are a very visible product with potential to show the benefits of aluminium. The arguments put forward by the cork sector were mainly on environmental issues, so we demonstrate the recycling and sustainability benefits of aluminium closures. They can be collected either separately, with other packaging, or together with glass bottles and already, in Europe, the recycling rate is about 45%. In fact aluminium closures are probably the world’s most recycled closures in the wine and spirits sector.

AlCircle: Tell us something about the Alufoil Trophy organised by EAFA. How is it expected to create awareness about the use of aluminium?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: The Alufoil Trophy recognises and rewards the innovative use of aluminium foil, container and aluminium closures in all its many forms and uses. The annual competition shows the great variety of applications and demonstrates the innovation potential of products using foil. That can be either a new product or a new application with an existing product.

AlCircle: Being an association, does EAFA intend to associate itself with more packaging and foil events in future?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: As the about 75% of the European foil production is going to packaging and household foil markets, with most of our division members producing these products, so our core business will remain packaging. But we also promote the technical applications such as automotive, building and electronics. We were the main driver of the Global Aluminium Foil Roller Initiative (GLAFRI) in which more than 30 foil rollers, from all continents, have joined forces to support foil growth globally and coordinate messages on sustainability and recovery.

AlCircle: How does EAFA intend to promote recycling and sustainability through the use of aluminium?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: We support various initiatives to increase the recycling of aluminium foil. At the same time we promote the resource efficiency of aluminium foil in the complete life cycle –which might have even greater benefits than simply recycling. For instance a recent life cycle assessment measured the relative environmental performance of two different sandwich packs: aluminium household foil and a rigid plastic lunchbox. It found that aluminium foil performs very favourably in terms of environmental impact and should be considered a sustainable and convenient alternative product for packed lunches. That calculation was without any recycling. So when recycling is taken into account the performance of household foil is even better.

Household foil is just a minor application but probably the only product of the entire aluminium world which end-consumers use regularly, therefore making them aware of the material. We believe there is a huge potential for household foil to be an ambassador for the material aluminium as such, especially with those LCA results mentioned before.

On top of that, we regularly support international BBQ events where household foil, semi-rigid containers and aluminium closures are highly appreciated by both the professional teams and the end-consumers.

AlCircle: What is your future outlook for the rolling and foil industry in Europe?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: The deliveries of the European foil rolling industry are very stable at present or even showing slight growth. As the main markets for aluminium foil are FMCG, which are not as volatile as some other markets, the demand is also quite constant.

AlCircle: Which industrial sector do you think has the potential to boost the demand for aluminium in Europe?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: Currently, the major aluminium companies are focussing on the automotive sector but other markets, like building and packaging, should not be forgotten. We believe that the main benefits of aluminium will succeed in many markets – either substituting other materials due light weighting and barrier functions, or creating new markets in terms of products or regions.

AlCircle: As you know, AlCircle is an information and B2B portal for the aluminium industry and we aim to be the reference point for aluminium industry players as far as information and business are concerned. As an aluminium professional; do you think e-commerce & digital media can work well in the aluminium sector?

Mr. Stefan Glimm: AlCircle has become, for us, one of the main information sources for daily aluminium news. As for e-commerce tools in the aluminium value chain, currently we see limited uses for them. But digital marketing has probably more chances for penetration.

Disclaimer: “The information presented herein is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional advice. The views and opinions shared in the interview section of www.alcircle.com are unique to the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of www.alcircle.com.”