Greiner: Defying the Trend of Declining Investments in Europe and Focusing on Sustainability

Greiner, an Upper Austrian plastics and foam company, is bucking the trend of declining investments in Europe and Austria. Despite warnings about deindustrialization, Greiner has invested over 80 percent of its 138 million euros in European locations, with 56 million euros flowing into Austria. The company’s CEO Saori Dubourg emphasized their commitment to Austria as a location due to its favorable conditions for developing new technologies and products.

Despite facing challenges such as a 9.1 percent decline in sales to 2.1 billion euros and geopolitical tensions, Greiner’s finance director Hannes Moser described the results as solid. The company has seen signs of recovery in the packaging sector for the current financial year, but the market environment remains challenging.

Greiner has been actively investing in its sustainability strategy and commitment to the Circular economy. In 2022, they acquired a Serbian recycling company to further their progress towards achieving EU recycling goals and complying with the Supply Chain Act. The European Green Deal brings both regulations and opportunities for expanding markets and intensifying the economy.

In addition to investing in sustainable practices, Greiner is also focusing on developing its employees. They are offering training programs in artificial intelligence and sustainability, with a goal of increasing the proportion of women in management positions to 40 percent by 2030. Despite global labor shortages, Greiner increased its number of employees by 9.3 percent last year to 10,544 worldwide, with a slight increase in Austria to 2,050 employees. There are currently 190 vacant positions at Greiner, with 60 of them located in Austria.