SIC 2674 Uncoated Paper and Multiwall Bags
SIC 2674
This classification includes establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing uncoated paper bags or multiwall bags and sacks, whether or not coated or containing plastics film or metal foil. Establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing bags from plastics, unsupported film, foil, coated paper, or laminated or coated combinations of these materials, are classified in SIC 2673: Plastics, Foil, and Coated Paper Bags. Those establishments manufacturing textile bags are classified in SIC 2393: Textile Bags.
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Uncoated Paper and Multiwall Bag Manufacturing
For decades, the uncoated paper and multiwall bag industry has faced intense competition from rival products made from plastic. Plastic bags are less expensive to manufacture and are often of lighter weight than paper products. Paper, however, is typically more durable, more favorable for colorful advertising, and more readily recycled. Despite the latter characteristic, paper bags have begun facing competition from a third opponent—reusable bags.
Although environmental criticism against shopping bags has primarily targeted plastics, paper bags are caught in the struggle. Lumped together as "disposable products," paper and plastic bags are denounced for their one-time use, after which they are discarded and replaced by a new bag the next time a consumer goes shopping. Led by San Francisco, some U.S. cities are restricting the types of checkout bags offered by retail outlets.
The U.S. Census Bureau reported that there were 117 uncoated paper and multiwall bag manufacturers in the United States in 2005. Arkansas accounted for the most establishments, with 12 manufacturers. Overall, the U.S. industry employed more than 12,500 workers.
In all uncoated paper and multiwall (three-ply or more) bag applications, the package must contain and protect the product or contents. Paper is used because of its ability to contribute strength and stiffness or rigidity to the container. Plastics may also offer strength, but paper is more resilient than plastics over a wider temperature range. Paper is better for printing than other materials. However, in many applications paper bags must be coated with waxes or plastics (or laminated to plastic films or foil) to develop effective barriers to water, vapor, gases, or odors.
The uncoated paper and multiwall bag industry is split between two categories. Shipping sacks and multiwall bags accounted for the largest share of the industry, followed by grocers' bags, sacks, variety, and shopping bags. The gap between the two categories will likely grow as the grocers' bag market continues to decline.
In the shipping sack and multiwall bag subcategory, the dominant product is multiwall shipping sacks and bags, with single- and double-wall sacks and bags a distant second. Of the total number of single- or double-wall bags produced, the largest customer category was agriculture and food, followed by building materials, chemicals, and minerals.
In the uncoated paper grocers' bags, sacks, variety, and shopping bags subcategory, the leading product remains uncoated paper grocer's sacks.
In the industry's terminology, paper sacks refer to the large bags used to hold customers' supermarket purchases. The 1/6th barrel sack is the standard paper sack used in supermarkets. It is called that because in the early 1900s, when paper bags were gaining in popularity, they were used to hold 1/6th of a barrel of flour. Another popular size is the 1/8th barrel sack.
Paper sacks come in a variety of basis weights. Single-ply bags range in basis weight from 60 pound to 80 pound. Some stores prefer a double-ply bag, made of two 40-pound basis weight bags, since it can hold heavier items. Stores using this double-ply bag can avoid the "double bagging" common at checkouts of supermarkets using single-ply bags.
The bag industry refers to smaller, lighter weight bags as "grocery bags." These bags are used in outlets such as convenience stores and fast food restaurants. They come in a variety of sizes, from 1/2-pound bags to 25-pound bags. These weights are also based on early 1900s terminology, when paper bags were graded by how much sugar they could hold. Retail trade establishments remain this manufacturing industry's primary customer.
The uncoated paper and multiwall bag market was a steadily growing and relatively stable industry into the 1970s. Paper accounted for the vast majority of bags produced for retail outlets, such as...
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