FPA recently reviewed a comprehensive report by the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) into claims that dumped and subsidized aluminum foil from China is causing or threating injury to the domestic aluminum foil industry. The report followed the March 9, 2017 filing of an unfair trade complaint by the Aluminum Association Trade Enforcement Working Group and its members JW Aluminum Company, Novelis North America, and Reynolds Consumer Products (the “petitioners”). The complaint seeks steep import duties exceeding 140 percent to be applied to imported Chinese aluminum foil. While sharing many of the goals of the petitioners to encourage American manufacturing, the FPA U.S. Aluminum Foil Converters Committee opposes the petition.

Aluminum foil is a critical input needed by the $30 billion U.S. flexible packaging industry to create innovative and functional packaging for consumer goods such as food, beverages, candy, and pharmaceuticals. The case covers both standard household aluminum foil as well as specialty ultra-thin aluminum foil that is not available in the United States. The case is important to FPA’s U.S. Aluminum Foil Converters Committee, which is fighting to retain manufacturing jobs in the United States. “If this case results in restrictions on the supply of aluminum foil, including ultra-thin foil, these jobs will be at risk of relocation overseas,” stated FPA’s President and CEO, Alison Keane, Esq. “The impact of this case will shift large numbers of jobs overseas with no benefit to the U.S. aluminum foil industry,” said Keane.