The Smurfit Westrock packaging facility in northeast Cedar Rapids will be closing its doors in early October, according to a notice posted this week to the Iowa Worker Adjustment Retraining and Notification (WARN) Act website.
According to the notification, dated Aug. 5, 100 workers at the facility will lose their jobs effective Oct. 4.
According to public records, the plant, at 1601 Blairs Ferry Road NE, was originally built in 1956 and operated for many years under the ownership of Longview Fibre Paper and Packaging.
Kapstone Paper and Packaging Corp. acquired Longview Fibre, including its Cedar Rapids plant, in 2013, according to The Gazette.
In 2018, Westrock Co. acquired Kapstone Paper and Packaging Corp., inheriting the Cedar Rapids plant.
And in July 2024, WestRock merged with Smurfit Kappa to form Smurfit Westrock, a global sustainable packaging firm, and the Cedar Rapids facility was renamed once again at that time.
According to the company’s website, Smurfit Westrock focuses on designing, manufacturing, and distributing a wide range of paper-based packaging solutions, including everything from custom and standard containers to displays and heavy-duty packaging for various industries.
