Graphic Packaging International (Graphic Packaging), a global leader in sustainable consumer packaging, has announced the launch of its next-generation Boardio™ machinery technology, offering enhanced multi-footprint capability that transforms how brands and co-packers approach Boardio paperboard canister production.

Brands and co-packers face mounting pressure to respond quickly to shifting market demands while maximizing their equipment investments. When capital is committed to packaging machinery, that investment needs to work harder, deliver more, and provide the flexibility to adapt as consumer preferences evolve, and the new Boardio machine multi-footprint capability does just that.

Boardio is a recyclable, rigid paperboard canister that provides an alternative to plastic, glass, and metal containers. Made from up to 90% renewable materials, it can deliver a plastic reduction of more than 90% versus rigid containers. Alongside winning 20 global packaging awards since launch, Boardio has replaced more than 50 million rigid plastic containers in 2023 and 2024 alone. 

The Proven Boardio Platform, Now With Ultimate Flexibility

The new machine technology takes a proven platform and adds format flexibility through the addition of modules. The new multi-footprint capability enables Boardio production in multiple shapes — round, octagonal, triangular, and square — along with variable heights, widths, and barrier specifications, all from a single machine. Customers simply select modules based on the degree of flexibility they require.  

For co-packers managing diverse client portfolios or large brands seeking to differentiate product lines and serve both large families and smaller households, this technology represents a significant operational and commercial advantage. 

Johan Werme, head of sales for paperboard canister solutions at Graphic Packaging, said: “This new capability addresses a longstanding frustration customers have had with traditional packaging; rigid plastic and metal canisters typically lock brands into off-the-shelf formats unless they have the volumes to justify custom tooling. However, with Boardio’s new multi-footprint technology, we’re putting format control directly into the customer’s hands. That means shorter production runs across multiple configurations, the ability to iterate designs more frequently, and the transport and storage efficiency that comes from delivering canisters flat rather than pre-formed. It’s flexibility that scales with your business, not against it.” 

For co-packers and brands alike, the technology ensures that capital investments in Boardio machinery deliver sustained value as market conditions shift, product portfolios expand, and the demand for more circular, more functional, and more convenient packaging solutions continues to grow. 

The multi-footprint enhancement is now available as an option for new machine orders. 

Graphic Packaging International was recently recognized as one of the 2026 World’s Most Ethical Companies®, a distinction that reflects our commitment to accountability, integrity and transparency across our global operations. In this Q&A, Lori Kaczynski, senior vice president and chief audit, risk and compliance officer, and Michelle Fitzpatrick, vice president and chief sustainability officer, reflect on our ethics, compliance and sustainability progress.

Q. What does it mean to be recognized as one of the 2026 World’s Most Ethical Companies®?

Fitzpatrick: This is truly an honor and a powerful affirmation of who we are and how we operate. Integrity and accountability — two of our five core values — guide decisions across our global business, and this recognition shows that our systems are working the way they should.

It also reinforces something important: ethics, compliance and sustainability are deeply connected. As our sustainability ambitions grow, this recognition confirms that we have the foundation, systems, and governance needed to deliver on those commitments responsibly.

Kaczynski: I agree. This honor shows that ethics isn’t just a value we talk about; it’s part of how we run the company every day.

For customers, it signals they’re working with a partner that not only provides sustainable packaging but also meets high standards for transparency and responsible practices. Consumer goods companies care deeply about the strength of their suppliers’ compliance programs because it impacts their brands, their supply chains, and their own ability to meet regulatory and consumer expectations. And for our employees, it strengthens the trust and culture we’ve been building — the kind that helps people feel supported and accountable.

“This recognition reflects the high-integrity culture we are building — one that values doing things the right way. Acting ethically strengthens trust with customers, supports operational excellence and helps us remain a preferred partner. It also creates long‑term value through strong execution and growth.”

— Robbert Rietbroek, President and Chief Executive Officer, Graphic Packaging

Q: Building a strong ethics and compliance program takes sustained effort. What are some of the most important steps Graphic Packaging has taken in recent years to strengthen governance, accountability and ethical decision-making across our global operations?

Kaczynski: We’ve strengthened oversight in meaningful ways — including appointing our first chief compliance officer and establishing an executive committee to guide the program’s strategy and metrics. We also improved how we report to the Board and Audit Committee, which gives us stronger oversight at the top.

From there, we’ve taken a very practical, risk‑based approach. We stay close to the regulatory landscape, update our risk assessments regularly, and continually refine our Code of Conduct so it truly supports ethical decision‑making. We’ve also modernized our policies and procedures, advanced third‑party due diligence, and expanded communication and training. On top of that, we’ve built a strong global privacy program, improved how we manage conflicts of interest, and rolled out a “speak‑up” campaign to reinforce transparency and trust. All of this is backed by solid complaint and investigation processes and internal audits.

We’ve also taken meaningful steps on human rights and supply‑chain accountability. Through our Modern Slavery Report and ongoing alignment with the UN Global Compact, we’re reinforcing responsible labor practices, environmental stewardship, and anti‑corruption commitments across our global footprint.

Q: As you worked through the Ethisphere assessment — reviewing hundreds of data points across areas such as governance, training, risk management and culture — what insights stood out most?

Fitzpatrick: The assessment gave us a clear, structured way to self‑evaluate the progress we’ve made over the past few years. It reaffirmed where we’re strongest: particularly in our environmental and social impact programs, as well as the processes we’re establishing to better assess and manage risks in our supply chain. It also highlighted areas in our program with room to grow. Where we’re headed next is further embedding ethics conversations and practices even more deeply into everyday behaviors across our global organization.

Kaczynski: I completely agree. What stood out to me is how much the assessment validated that we’re on the right trajectory. Our policies and controls aren’t just well‑designed — employees are actually using them. The strong alignment we saw in areas like training, speak‑up culture, and global accountability shows that ethics and compliance is becoming part of how we operate day to day, not something running in parallel. That’s exactly the cultural depth Michelle is describing as our next phase.

Q: Ethics, compliance and sustainability are increasingly interconnected. How do your teams collaborate to ensure that our environmental and social commitments are supported by strong governance, transparency and responsible decision-making?

Kaczynski: Our ethics, compliance and sustainability teams work closely together because our environmental and social commitments only hold weight when they’re backed by strong governance and responsible decision‑making. We align on policies, risk assessments, training, and reporting so that sustainability goals — whether related to climate, human rights, or responsible sourcing — are supported by clear standards and transparent processes. That collaboration helps ensure ethical expectations show up in daily operations and that our sustainability strategy is grounded in integrity and accountability.

Fitzpatrick: Exactly. The strength of our sustainability commitments comes from that shared accountability. We stay closely connected across sustainability, legal, compliance, internal audit, procurement, marketing, sales and operations to make sure we’re all working from the same frameworks, data standards and risk‑management processes.

Whether we’re setting climate targets, managing customer and/or supplier expectations, or reporting performance, we rely on consistent, documented processes and credible data so that what we say externally is fully supported internally. This integrated approach helps us manage risk, maintain trust with stakeholders, and deliver on our commitments in a way that is both responsible and resilient.

Q: What emerging risks or ethical challenges do you see for companies in our industry? How is Graphic Packaging evolving to stay ahead?

Kaczynski: We’re seeing risks emerge where supply‑chain integrity, data and AI governance, and evolving regulations all intersect. The challenge is not only meeting those requirements but doing so consistently across every region where we operate — while maintaining trust with customers, employees and shareholders. That’s why we’re sharpening our enterprise risk sensing, strengthening oversight of AI and human rights, reinforcing our “speak‑up culture,” and embedding compliance deeper into our business.

Fitzpatrick: Lori’s exactly right, and many of those same pressures show up in sustainability. Regulations and reporting requirements are accelerating just as quickly, putting real emphasis on data assurance. Stakeholders now expect sustainability data and claims to be as accurate and reliable as financial information, which raises the bar across the board.

Where our teams come together is ensuring the governance behind sustainability data and related claims is strong. We’re aligning sustainability closely with ethics and compliance, investing in better tools and processes, and working across functions to build consistent reporting and communication standards.

And as Lori noted, supply‑chain expectations continue to rise — from responsible sourcing to human rights to circularity to decarbonization — so embedding these requirements into procurement and supplier oversight is critical. Weak governance or limited transparency can quickly become a business risk, which is why our integrated approach is so important as expectations keep evolving.

This recognition, alongside our placement on the 2026 rankings of America’s Most Just Companies by Just Capital and 2026 World’s Most Admired Companies list by Fortune, shows that others see the values our people put into action every day. It’s a reminder that doing what’s right for our employees, customers and communities continues to fuel the impact we’re creating together.

20th annual recognition honors organizations committed to business integrity through robust ethics, compliance and governance programs

ATLANTA, March 18, 2026 – Graphic Packaging Holding Company (NYSE: GPK), a global leader in sustainable consumer packaging, has been recognized as one of the 2026 World’s Most Ethical Companies® by Ethisphere, a global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices.

Graphic Packaging has been recognized for the first time and is one of only two honorees in the forestry, paper and packaging industry. In 2026, 138 honorees were recognized, spanning 17 countries and 40 industries. This year’s class includes 19 first-time honorees, and six organizations recognized 20 times.

“This recognition reflects the high-integrity culture we are building — one that values doing things the right way,” said Robbert Rietbroek, Graphic Packaging’s president and chief executive officer. “Acting ethically strengthens trust with customers, supports operational excellence and helps us remain a preferred partner. It also creates long‑term value through strong execution and growth.”

“Congratulations to Graphic Packaging International for achieving recognition as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies®. As we mark the 20th class of honorees, this group continues to raise the bar for business integrity by embedding ethics into everyday decision-making and long-term strategy. Companies with strong ethics, compliance, and governance programs are built for better long-term performance,” said Erica Salmon Byrne, Ethisphere’s chief strategy officer and executive chair.

Methodology & Scoring

The World’s Most Ethical Companies assessment is grounded in Ethisphere’s proprietary Ethics Quotient®, which requires companies to provide 240+ documented proof points on practices that support robust ethics and compliance, including: corporate governance; program structure & resourcing; written standards; training, awareness, & communication; risk assessment & auditing; investigations, enforcement, discipline & incentives; measurement of ethical culture; third-party risk management, and environmental & social impact.

That data undergoes further qualitative analysis by a panel of experts who spend thousands of hours vetting and evaluating each year’s group of applicants.

This process serves as an operating framework to capture and codify best-in-class ethics and compliance practices from organizations across industries and from around the world.

Honorees

To view the full list of this year’s honorees, please visit the World’s Most Ethical Companies website.

Contact Information

Media: Comms@Graphicpkg.com

Investors: Investor.Relations@Graphicpkg.com

About Graphic Packaging Holding Company

Graphic Packaging designs and produces consumer packaging made primarily from renewable or recycled materials. An industry leader in innovation, the Company is committed to reducing the environmental footprint of consumer packaging. Graphic Packaging operates a global network of design and manufacturing facilities serving the world’s most widely recognized brands in food, beverage, foodservice, household, and other consumer products. Learn more at www.graphicpkg.com.

About Ethisphere

Ethisphere is the global leader in defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices that strengthen corporate brands, build trust in the marketplace, and deliver business success. Companies turn ethics, compliance, and culture into a business advantage by leveraging Ethisphere’s data-driven program & culture assessments featuring the latest guidance and the practices of hundreds of global organizations across the 8 pillars of an ethical culture, and 240+ ethics, compliance, social, and governance data points delivered through a proprietary software platform. Ethisphere also honors superior integrity programs through World’s Most Ethical Companies® recognition, brings together a community of industry experts with the Business Ethics Leadership Alliance (BELA), and advances ethical business practices through the Global Ethics Summit, Ethisphere Magazine, and the Ethicast podcast. For more information, visit https://ethisphere.com.

Graphic Packaging International’s first virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) helps fuel a more sustainable supply chain for consumer packaging brands.

Thanks to our first VPPA with Zelestra, three new solar plants in Spain will add about 100 MW of new solar power capacity to the local power grid, when fully operational. That’s enough to power more than 52,000 households in the area.

Caption: Graphic Packaging International, Zelestra, local officials and supporters celebrated the inauguration of José Cabrera in Guadalajara, Spain, the largest solar plant in the VPPA project and the first fully delivered in 2025.

For us, this is a way to claim using more renewable electricity to reduce our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in our European packaging operations. For our customers, this means packaging with a lower carbon footprint, supporting their sustainability goals and creating more responsible supply chains.

Caption: New solar plants supported by Graphic Packaging’s VPPA include José Cabrera (top), Socovos II (bottom left) and Villamañán (bottom right).

Project Overview

Estimations are based on 2024 location-based emission factors for the Spanish grid.

What Is a VPPA?

A renewable power purchase agreement (PPA or RPPA) is a long-term contract between an energy company and a buyer. The buyer agrees to purchase the electricity output (or rights to the output) from the power asset along with the energy attribute certificates (EACs) associated with the purchased renewable electricity.

Meet Zelestra: Zelestra, our selected partner, has more than two decades of experience working in 13 countries. They specialize in developing, constructing, commercializing, and operating large-scale renewable energy projects.

EACs certify renewable electricity generation. Each EAC represents proof that 1 MWh of renewable electricity was produced and added to a power grid. And EACs are required to be able to claim renewable electricity usage — physically or virtually.

In a virtual power purchase agreement, like ours, we do not physically receive the electricity generated by the solar plants — only the EACs associated with the generated electricity. We apply the EACs to the electricity we buy from our own local utilities to claim renewable electricity use. Once we apply the EACs, that output cannot be claimed by anyone else.

Caption: The diagram above illustrates the flow of renewable electricity and renewable EACs in a VPPA.

Our VPPA with Zelestra provides Graphic Packaging International with EACs corresponding to approximately 70% of the projects’ output. With these EACs, we’ll be able to cover close to 70% of our EMEA region’s purchased electricity demand (or 100% in continental Europe) with renewable electricity. And we expect to reduce over 50% of Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions from Graphic Packaging International’s EMEA operations.

“By participating in a VPPA, we’re helping to speed up the process of ‘greening’ the grid,” said Michelle Fitzpatrick, vice president and chief sustainability officer at Graphic Packaging International. “Our support gives renewable energy developers the ability to build new projects and add new capacity to the power grid.”

This new capacity can replace and/or prevent investments in new fossil fuel plants, as well as enable the decommissioning of existing fossil fuel plants. Unlike the purchase of EACs from existing assets, the EACs from our VPPA are generated from new assets that are adding renewable energy capacity, thus further supporting climate change mitigation.

“This would not be possible without Graphic Packaging International,” said Luis Alvargonzález, Zelestra’s Spain country manager. “Their commitment to sustainability enabled us to accelerate the development of three new solar projects, supporting the country’s transition to reliable, competitive renewable energy.”

Why Solar Power?

The renewable energy source of a VPPA could be solar, wind, hydropower or another renewable source. These additional power sources help stabilize power grids and quickly expand capacity to meet growing electricity demand.

Solar power is abundant and accessible. In 90 minutes, enough sunlight strikes the earth to provide the entire planet’s energy needs for one year, reports the International Energy Agency. Solar plant technology also operates quietly and passively, minimizing disturbances to the surrounding environment.

And solar plants can be integrated into the natural landscape to mitigate the impact on wildlife and nature. The solar plants are surrounded by native plants. Select sites provide nest boxes for local birds, shelters for bats and conservation measures to support biodiversity and enrich local ecosystems.

Renewable electricity projects, like this, also help strengthen the local economy. Solar plant construction creates jobs and supports local employment, training and education.

“This is one of the largest VPPA projects of its kind in recent years in Europe’s packaging manufacturing industry — and we’re proud to lead the way.”

— Elodie Bugnicourt, Sustainability Director International, Graphic Packaging International

Using Renewable Energy to Cut CPGs’ Scope 3 Emissions

Everyone wants to feel good about the purchases they make. So, companies that sell consumer packaged goods — known as CPGs, the customers we serve at Graphic Packaging International — are exploring ways to reduce the carbon footprint of their operations and supply chains.

As a key supply chain partner, we’re supporting our customers’ goals by setting science-based targets to reduce GHG emissions from our own operations. The emissions avoided by using renewable electricity reduce the carbon footprint of the packaging we supply, driving more sustainable supply chains for our customers.

“Achieving our ambition of zero emissions by 2050 is going to require a comprehensive approach, involving a range of actions,” said Fitzpatrick. “Our VPPA is just one of the actions we’re taking to progress on our near-term targets that we’ve committed to through our Vision 2030 and our Better, Every Day goals.”

By 2032, we aim to halve our Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions, which will also require using more renewable fuel and improving the energy efficiency of our operations.

“For us as well as our customers, it’s critical to reduce the environmental impact of packaging across the entire packaging lifecycle,” said Robert Mayr, vice president of operational excellence at Graphic Packaging International. “To achieve this, we’re sourcing renewable electricity — through initiatives like this VPPA — while also implementing energy-saving measures across our packaging manufacturing sites.”

“Innovation is in the heart of our sustainability strategy. We are here to support the very challenging environmental targets of our customers.”

— Jean-Francois Roche, Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, Graphic Packaging International

The Next Steps on Our Decarbonization Journey

Graphic Packaging International’s first VPPA marks a major milestone in our decarbonization journey. Starting in 2026, we expect to begin to see significant results from this agreement, a meaningful step toward our Climate Action goals for a better future.

Reducing our Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions is a key part of our comprehensive climate strategy. We intend to:

• Use more renewable fuel in our paperboard manufacturing facilities.
• Make our manufacturing operations more energy efficient.
• And increase our renewable electricity claims to cover at least half of our purchased electricity.

“We will leverage the learnings from this project when we look at other global regions, like the U.S., to continue our journey to increase our use of renewable electricity and achieve our goal of having a minimum of 50% purchased renewable electricity by 2030,” said Fitzpatrick.

Learn more about our Better by 2030 sustainability goals and progress in our 2024 Impact Report, and follow our journey on LinkedIn.