Ireland ‘s Jefferson Smurfit Group and Dutch firm Kappa Packaging are planning to merge operations, building a packaging colossus spanning 32 countries and employing 43,000 people . Smurfitt Kappa Group, as it will be called, will have a firmer grip on European markets thanks to Smurfit’s strength in western and southern Europe coupled with Kappa’s positions in northern and eastern Europe. Smurfit also has a leading market position in Latin America.
