Packaging Industry M&A Activity Tracking
Global Packaging M&A recorded 33 deals in November, down two from October levels. Although month-over-month deal activity is down, November marks the first time the Global Packaging M&A market has recorded over 30 deals in consecutive months since 2021. Robust activity levels were driven by strategic and financial buyers, with each buyer type generating deal volumes greater than their 2023 monthly average. Overall, driven by a recent uptick in deal activity, Global Packaging M&A is on pace to exceed 2022 levels.
- Strategic buyers accounted for 43% of total deal volume in November, with 14 deals recorded. Although this was seven less than October levels, strategic buyers exceeded their average monthly deal volume by three deals
- Financial buyers recorded 19 deals in November, making it the most active month for this buyer group since December 2021. This increase in monthly activity is mainly due to platform transactions, which increased by five deals compared to the previous month
- The Paper Packaging subsector recorded 14 deals, which represented 43% of the total deal volume for the month. The majority of these deals were attributed to financial buyers, which accounted for 79% of the subsector’s transactions
- The Industrial end market recorded 16 deals in November and accounted for 48% of total deal activity. Furthermore, November represents the end market’s most active month of 2023
The Global Packaging M&A market has recorded its best two-month stretch since 2021, showing signs of a turnaround in packaging M&A activity. The recent increase in packaging M&A coupled with improving macroeconomic conditions provides some optimism for improved packaging transaction activity in 2024. If you are a packaging company considering a merger, acquisition, sale, or recapitalization in the short or longer term please consider leveraging PMCF’s transaction planning and execution expertise to best position your company in a transaction.
Sources: Capital IQ, PitchBook, Thomson Reuters, Company Reports, PMCF. Data as of November 30, 2023
Packaging M&A By Subsector
Total Packaging M&A By End Market
Packaging Transactions By Buyer Type
Notable M&A Activity
Public Entity Performance
Major News
- Economy’s Soft Landing Comes Into View as Job Growth Slowly Descends (The Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/economy/jobs/jobs-report-november-2023-us-economy-59125cde?mod=jobs_news_article_pos5 - Recycling Expanded for Multilayer Polyamide Films (Packaging Digest)
https://www.packagingdigest.com/food-packaging/recycling-expanded-for-multilayer-polyamide-films - Single-Use Plastic Bans Elsewhere Foreshadow US Future (Packaging Digest)
https://www.packagingdigest.com/sustainability/single-use-plastic-bans-elsewhere-foreshadow-us-future - Inflation’s Cooldown Gives the Fed Leeway (The Wall Street Journal)
https://www.wsj.com/economy/central-banking/inflations-cooldown-gives-the-fed-leeway-ae6f6e84 - Reusable Packaging Can Compete on Price with Single-Use, MacArthur Foundation Says (Plastics News)
https://www.plasticsnews.com/news/reusable-packaging-can-compete-price-single-use-macarthur-foundation-says
Download Packaging M&A Update – November 2023
Packaging M&A Update – February 2026
Global Packaging M&A tapered in February as 20 deals were announced in the sector, down more than 30% from prior month and prior year levels.
Plastics M&A Update – February 2026
Global Plastics M&A cooled off in February following a record-setting January with 31 transactions – down 21 from the prior month and seven from last February.
Packaging M&A Update – January 2026
Global packaging M&A maintained steady volume to open 2026 with 30 deals in January, which was in-line with historical levels for January but below the record 45 transactions announced in January 2025.
Plastics M&A Update – January 2026
52 global plastics M&A transactions were recorded in January 2026, which represented one of the most active months for plastics M&A since PMCF began tracking the sector.
Plastics M&A Update – December 2025
Global Plastics M&A posted 34 transactions in December, one deal fewer than both November and the 2025 monthly average.