Made in Indiana: Plastic cups by Berry Global

May 31, 2023

History: Evansville-based Berry Global Inc. is a behemoth—it has some 46,000 global employees and 333 manufacturing facilities around the world that make everything from cosmetics packaging to medicine bottles to industrial shrink-wrap. But one of its most visible products is its thermoform drink cups found at many restaurant chains. During its 2022 fiscal year, the company earned $14.5 billion in revenue. But when the company originally known as Imperial Plastics was launched in 1967, it had just three people (founder Robert Morris and two employees), and one injection molding machine that made plastic aerosol caps. The company was renamed Berry Plastics Corp. in the 1980s after Jack Berry Sr. purchased it. The company grew and diversified over the years, acquiring more than 40 plastics manufacturing companies between 1987 and 2017 and adding films, tapes and adhesives to its product portfolio. The company went public in 2012 and changed its name to Berry Global Inc. in 2017.

Product details: In 2001, Berry pioneered the technology for producing thermoform drink cups. Themoforming involves taking a sheet of heated resin and using air and mechanical means to push the sheet onto a mold, which turns the flat sheet of resin into a sheet of molded cup shapes. The sheet is then trimmed to separate the cups. Thermoforming enables a manufacturer to make high volume of lightweight products such as single-use drink cups. The company also makes insulated cups that can hold hot drinks. Today, Berry is North America's largest manufacturer of drink cups as measured by revenue. Berry is working to make all of its consumer packaging, including drink cups, out of 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable materials by 2025.

Notable clients: Berry's single-use cups, including those designed for cold drinks and insulated cups that can hold hot drinks, are used by a range of convenience and quick-serve food and drink chains including McDonald's, Starbucks, Taco Bell and Wendy's.

Fun fact: Across its operating footprint, Berry has 51 manufacturing lines—including some in Indiana—dedicated to making drink cups.

Address: Company headquarters is 101 Oakley St., Evansville.

Website: berryglobal.com

Compiled by Susan Orr

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