China set to expand packaging industry

China is readying to draft a long-term development plan which aims to build up the country's existing packaging industry into one of the most dominant players in the world.

The ambition was declared by Che Xiangfu, deputy secretary-general of the China Packaging Technology Association, at an ongoing fair for the equipment manufacturing business in west China, held in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi Province.

According to Che, China hopes to develop its own core packaging technologies and packaging brands over the course of the next 20 to 30 years. The packaging industry has been developing rapidly in China, and it currently employs around three million people. In line with this increase, the industry's contribution to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) has risen steadily.

However, its development has been plagued by factors such as limited scale, backward technology, shortage of capital and low productivity.

Up to now, the country has had no modern packaging machines, materials or patented products but has had to rely on imports for advanced technology, machines and luxury packaging materials.

Meanwhile, existing rules and regulations involving packaging are far from ideal and research into packaging standards had lagged behind, said Che.

He urged preferential treatment for such aspects as taxation, funding scientific research and increased training to promote the fast development of the country's packaging industry.

To cover the short fall in investment funds it is expected that many of the major European, US and global packaging players will increase their investment in China in coming years. Tough regulations for foreign investment means that most of the new venture will take the form of joint ventures, which means that many of the western packaging companies will have to set up business with Chinese partners.