Sonoco Products Company

Sonoco Products Company is a global provider of diversified consumer and industrial packaging, protective packaging, and packaging supply chain services. Founded in 1899 as Southern Novelty Company, its mission is to "Improve Lives Through Better Packaging" or "Better Packaging. Better Life." The company is headquartered in Hartsville, South Carolina, United States.

Sonoco's extensive product portfolio includes rigid paper and plastic containers, flexible packaging, industrial core and tube products, thermoformed plastics, retail point-of-purchase displays, metal packaging, and uncoated recycled paperboard. These solutions serve a wide array of market segments, including Food & Beverage, Pet Care, Household Products, Beauty & Personal Care, Construction, Industrial Paper Producers, Automotive, Chemicals, Healthcare, Home and Garden, and Electronics.

In recent news, Sonoco was named one of America's Most Trustworthy Companies by Newsweek and one of the World's Most Admired Companies by Fortune in 2026. The company reported Q1 2026 net sales of $1.7 billion, with strong performance in its Consumer Packaging segment, despite a slight decline attributed to the divestiture of its ThermoSafe business. Leadership changes occurred in 2025, with Paul Joachimczyk appointed CFO in June, following Jerry Cheatham's interim role. Under CEO Howard Coker, Sonoco continues to position itself as a global leader in high-value sustainable packaging and is recognized as the world's largest producer of composite cans, tubes, and cores.

Latest updates

Sonoco's Trustworthiness Ranking Highlights ESG's Growing Investor Importance

Event summary

  • Sonoco Products Company has been recognized as one of Newsweek’s ‘America’s Most Trustworthy Companies’ for the second consecutive year.
  • The ranking, conducted by Newsweek and Statista, surveyed over 25,000 U.S. respondents and considered consumer, employee, and investor perspectives.
  • Companies included had revenues exceeding $500 million and spanned 23 industries.
  • Sonoco reported $7.5 billion in net sales from continuing operations in 2025 and employs approximately 22,000 people globally.

The big picture

Sonoco’s repeated recognition on this list underscores the growing importance of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) factors in investor decision-making. While the award itself is largely symbolic, it signals a potential premium on companies perceived as ethical and sustainable, particularly within the capital-intensive packaging sector. The inclusion of employee and investor perspectives highlights the broadening definition of ‘trustworthiness’ beyond purely consumer-facing metrics, reflecting a shift towards stakeholder capitalism.

What we're watching

Reputation Risk
The reliance on third-party rankings like Newsweek’s introduces reputational risk; any future decline in the ranking could negatively impact investor sentiment despite Sonoco’s operational performance.
ESG Integration
How Sonoco integrates ESG factors into its business strategy beyond public relations will be critical to sustaining this perception of trustworthiness, particularly as regulatory scrutiny of sustainability claims intensifies.
Stakeholder Alignment
The survey methodology’s weighting of consumer, employee, and investor perspectives suggests Sonoco must actively manage alignment across these stakeholder groups to maintain its perceived trustworthiness.
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