Sealed Air

Overview

Sealed Air Corporation

trade name	SEE
type	Private
industry	Packaging
founded	1960 in Saddle Brook, New Jersey, U.S.
founders	Alfred W. Fielding Marc Chavannes
hq location	Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
locations	200+
area served	Global
key people	Dustin Semach (CEO)
brands	Bubble Wrap · Cryovac · Autobag · Sealed Air · Liquibox · Nexcel · prismiq
parent	Clayton, Dubilier & Rice
revenue	US$5.39 billion (2024)‡R1R‡
operating income	US$736 million (2024)‡R1R‡
net income	US$265 million (2024)‡R1R‡
assets	US$7.02 billion (2024)‡R1R‡
equity	US$625 million (2024)‡R1R‡
num employees	16,400 (2024)‡R1R‡
website	https://sealedair.com

Sealed Air Corporation, is an American packaging company known for its Cryovac food packaging and Bubble Wrap cushioning packaging.[2][3] It is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, and led by Dustin Semach, president, and CEO. The company had $5.4 billion in revenues in 2024. [2][4]

In November 2025, private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice agreed to acquire the company for a total enterprise value of $10.3 billion. This was completed on April 9, 2026.[5]

History

In 1957, American engineer Alfred W. Fielding and Swiss inventor Marc Chavannes sought to invent plastic wallpaper with a paper backing.

Acquisitions

In 1970, Sealed Air acquired Smith Packaging Ltd., which was later renamed Sealed Air of Canada, Ltd., marking Sealed Air's first international move.[10] In 1971, Sealed Air began marketing a new product; by laminating the AirCap cushioning to paper, the company now had Mail Lite padded shipping envelopes.[10]

In 1973, Sealed Air began marketing Ply-Mask, a pressure-sensitive polyethylene film used to protect delicate surfaces from scratches and the company's first product not based on its bubble technology.[10] The same year, Sealed Air brought their market to Europe by acquiring 10 percent of Sibco Universal, S.A., a French manufacturing firm.[10] Over the next few years, Sealed Air bought out the rest of Sibco and came up with the Sealed Air Solar Blanket.[10]

Acquired in 1977, Instapak foam is an expanding polyurethane foam that comes in a variety of densities. Used primarily for shipping, the foam-in-bag process molds to the shape of the object and expands to fill the void space of its shipping container.[10][23]

Sealed Air acquired Cellu Products Co. and Dri-Loc in 1983, Jiffy in 1987, Sentinel in 1991, Trigon Packaging NZ in 1993, and the Shurtuff Division of Shuford Mills, Inc. in 1993.[10][24] In 1994, Sealed Air followed up with the further acquisitions of Hereford Paper and Allied Products Ltd., Sup-Air-Pack, Fill Air, and packaging companies based in Norway, France, and Italy.

In 1998, Sealed Air was acquired and merged with the Cryovac Division of W.R. Grace for a $4.9 billion stock trade, and spun off from the Grace parent holding company as W. R. Grace, Inc. That corporation changed its name to the current Sealed Air.[7][25] In June 2000, Sealed Air purchased Dolphin Packaging for $119 million, to better serve its European customers.[26] In October 2011, Sealed Air acquired Diversey Holdings,[25] until its acquisition by Bain Capital in September 2017.[27]

In October 2017, Sealed Air acquired Fagerdala Singapore Pte Ltd., a manufacturer and fabricator of polyethylene foam.[28]

In August 2018, Sealed Air acquired Austin Foam Plastics (AFP, Inc.), a leading, privately held fabricator of foam, corrugated, molded pulp and wood packaging solutions. Sealed Air Acquires Austin Foam Plastics

In February 2023, Sealed Air acquired Liquibox, a manufacturer of Bag-in-Box sustainable fluids & liquids packaging and dispensing solutions for fresh food, beverage, consumer goods and industrial end-markets. Liquibox Acquisition

Operations

Sealed Air's food care division makes packaging for the food and beverage industry, while its product care division produces protective and specialty packaging materials for a wide range of goods.[29][2]

Brands

Bubble Wrap brand

Bubble Wrap is a failed wallpaper that was subsequently used as a greenhouse insulator.[10] Its best-known use is as a packaging material.[10] In its earliest form, Bubble Wrap's bubbles leaked, but by the mid 1960s a coating was developed to prevent them from losing air.[10] In 1969, Sealed Air reported $4 million in sales, mostly attributed to Bubble Wrap, as it was still a proprietary product at that time.[10]

Cryovac brand

Cryovac is a thin plastic, used to shrink or wrap objects. Depending on the type of job required of it, the plastic comes in a variety of thickness and durability.[30]

One of the uses of Cryovac is to wrap food. Once wrapped, most of the air in the package is removed to prevent oxidation and inhibit the growth of most pathogens. This process also gives food a longer shelf life in the refrigerator or freezer and makes freezer burn nearly impossible.[31] Cryovac Inc., a South Carolina-based company, created this product in the 1950 to extend the shipping distance of freshly slaughtered turkeys for Thanksgiving and Christmas.[31]

Bubble Wrap brand

Cryovac brand

Cryovac is a thin plastic, used to shrink or wrap objects. Depending on the type of job required of it, the plastic comes in a variety of thickness and durability.[30]

Sealed Air

History

Acquisitions

Operations

Brands

Bubble Wrap brand

Cryovac brand

Bubble Wrap brand

Cryovac brand

External links

References