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There's never a dull moment in the dynamic Australasian packaging industry, with M&A activity, leadership changes, and product innovation keeping our news desk busy all year long.

From Orora's booming growth over the financial year, to the Australian Government's pledge to make all packaging in the country reusable, compostable or recyclable by 2025, to needles in strawberries and plastic bags out of supermarkets, to the first ever Print21 + PKN LIVE joint event, 2018 was a rollercoaster of a year for the packaging industry... and PKN was there to cover all the news highlights.

See our review of the year that was in the latest issue of PKN magazine.

Food & Drink Business

Cobram Estate Olives (CBO) has formally claimed a purchase price adjustment of up to US$31.9 million on its California Olive Ranch (COR) acquisition and expects to pay no earn-out on the deal, as the Australian producer works through the completion of its largest ever transaction.

Maggie Beer Holdings (MBH) has pushed back the expected timing of its proposed $10 million sale of Hampers and Gifts Australia (HGA), with completion now targeted for February 2027 rather than a binding agreement signed by the end of this month.

RMIT University and End Food Waste Australia have launched the new Food and Beverage SME Packaging and Machinery Solution Centre, to help Australian food and beverage SMEs navigate the complex transition to more sustainable packaging and processing technologies, while protecting product quality and minimising food waste.