Packaging giant Smurfit Kappa has boosted its global footprint with the acquisition of a Mexican carton company in a move that comes hot on the heels of its purchase of a Peruvian firm. 

The company, headed by Tony Smurfit, said its purchase of folding carton company Cartonbox  was “an important milestone” for the company as it strengthens its presence in the paper packaging solutions business in Mexico.

Smurfit Kappa, which says it is the only large-scale pan-regional paper packaging player in Latin America, did not provide financial details of the deal.

Cartonbox employs 240 people and has a production capacity of more than 30 million packages per month.

Smurfit Kappa will have four folding carton locations in Mexico following the deal.

Juan G. Castaneda, The Americas CEO of Smurfit Kappa, said: “Our top priority is to generate value for our stakeholders, and Mexico has shown to be a key country for us to invest in.”

“Not only does this [acquisition] increase our footprint in the country, but it also allows us to answer our customers’ needs and expectations. I am certain this will help us move a step forward in becoming the leading paper-based packaging company in Mexico.”

Smurfit Kappa has over 350 production sites across the world, it reported revenue of €8.5bn last year.

The company has been busy with investments in recent months.

Last month it purchased Cartones del Pacifico, a paper-based packaging company located in Peru.

Smurfit Kappa also last month said it planned to invest €24m in modernising its plant at Rethel in Northern France.

Also in June the company completed a €12m investment in a new flexible material production facility at its plant in Ibi, Spain, while in May it said it is “substantially expanding” its converting capacity at four manufacturing plants across the Czech Republic and Slovakia with a €20m investment.

It has also announced investments at facilities in Germany, Scotland and Wales this year.

The company, which employs around 46,000 people, saw its revenue increase in the first three months of this year.

However, in a trading update in April it warned that supply shortages across the industry were pushing prices up.

It reported revenue of €2.27bn in the three months to March 31, an increase of 6pc on the prior year.