Bemis Packaging: 7 Questions Buyers Wish They’d Asked Before Their First Order

Caveat: I've been on the buyer side of Bemis packaging orders for about 7 years now, specifically in flexible films for food clients and medical-device barrier pouches. I've made enough mistakes (roughly $12,000 worth, if you're counting reprints, wasted materials, and expedited shipping) to develop a checklist. This FAQ is basically that checklist in question form.

If you're new to Bemis—or if you're considering switching suppliers after the Amcor acquisition changed things up—these are the questions you'll probably end up asking. Some are obvious. One of them, you probably haven't thought of yet.

1. What's the difference between Bemis Company, Inc. (the packaging company) and Bemis Manufacturing Company?

Honest answer: this confused me for my first year. Bemis Company, Inc. was the flexible packaging and pressure-sensitive materials giant headquartered in Wisconsin, acquired by Amcor in 2019. They made films, pouches, and healthcare packaging. Bemis Manufacturing Company is a separate entity (based in Sheboygan Falls, WI) that makes toilet seats, medical waste containers (sharps containers), and injection-molded products. They are not the same company. If you're looking for flexible packaging or medical-device barrier films, you're dealing with the former—now operating as part of Amcor.

I once wasted a morning calling the wrong Bemis about a pouch order. Don't do that.

2. Is Bemis packaging still a standalone brand after the Amcor acquisition?

Short version: Bemis was acquired by Amcor in a deal that closed mid-2019. The Bemis name still appears on certain product lines and legacy documentation, but operationally, most Bemis flexible packaging production has been integrated into Amcor's global structure. If you're ordering Bemis-specified materials (e.g., Bemis CURLAM barrier films or Bemis healthcare pouches), you're now dealing with Amcor's commercial team. Your contact will change. Your pricing structure will likely change. And—this is the critical part—your minimum order quantities may change, because Amcor's production scheduling is different.

I learned this the hard way in Q1 2020 when a standing Bemis order suddenly had a new account manager and a 30% higher MOQ. Our production team was not happy.

3. What's the minimum order quantity for Bemis flexible packaging films?

It depends on the product line and the gauge, but as a rough baseline (based on quotes I received between March 2023 and June 2024):

• Standard barrier films (for snacks, coffee, frozen food): Minimum roll quantity is usually 500–1,000 lbs per SKU. For a 48-inch wide roll at typical gauges, that's roughly 10,000–15,000 linear feet per line item.
• Healthcare packaging films (for medical-device pouches, sterile barrier systems): Minimums are lower, around 200–500 lbs per SKU, but there's often a surcharge for orders under 1,000 lbs. I've paid a 20% upcharge on a 250-lb order of Bemis Tyvek-compatible film. It's cheaper to combine multiple SKUs into one production run.
• Custom laminations (Bemis CURLAM or similar): Minimums jump to 2,000–5,000 lbs. You're paying for setup time and adhesive changeovers.

Prices as of late 2024; verify current minimums with your Amcor rep. And honestly, ask about their standard roll widths. A mismatch between your converting equipment's deckle width and their standard width can add 10–15% waste. Found that one out on a $4,200 order.

4. Can I use the same Bemis film for food packaging and medical device packaging?

Technically, you could, because Bemis makes films that are certified for both food contact (FDA 21 CFR) and medical device packaging (ISO 11607). But practically? Don't. Here's why:

• Food packaging films are typically optimized for oxygen and moisture barrier for shelf-life extension. They're often printed with graphics, and they use adhesives certified for indirect food contact.
• Medical device packaging films are engineered for sterility maintenance, peel strength (so a sterile field can be opened without tearing), and compatibility with EtO or gamma sterilization. The adhesive systems are often different—they can't outgas into the sterile field.

If you cross-purpose a film, you risk failing a seal-strength test or getting a sterility breach. A buddy of mine in MedTech procurement tried it once to consolidate SKUs. The validation failure cost more than the savings from consolidation.

5. How has Bemis pricing changed since the Amcor acquisition?

Broadly, prices went up. Not dramatically—maybe 8–12% across the board from 2020 to 2024—but the pricing structure also changed. Bemis historically operated with more regional pricing flexibility (price breaks per plant). Amcor centralized pricing globally. So:

• If you were getting a great deal from a specific Bemis plant because you were their only customer in that region, expect that advantage to disappear.
• If you were paying more because of geography, you might see prices come down slightly.

The bigger change is in contract terms. Amcor pushes for annual volume commitments (with penalties for underordering). Bemis was more willing to do spot orders. If you're used to ordering ad hoc, build in a buffer or negotiate a flexible volume band.

(Source: internal email exchange from my own contract renewal in July 2022, plus industry chatter at the 2023 FlexPackCon.)

6. What's the most common mistake buyers make with Bemis healthcare packaging?

I've made this mistake myself. Twice. It's not ordering the wrong film—it's assuming the film's seal properties are consistent across production lots. Bemis (and now Amcor) healthcare films are manufactured to tight specs, but seal initiation temperature and peel strength can shift slightly with each lot. If you're running a pouch-forming machine that's calibrated to the previous lot's data, you'll get seal failures or leakers.

Two specific errors I've seen:

• Error 1 (mine): I ordered 10,000 pre-made pouches from Bemis for a medical device. The film lot changed between the prototype run and the production run. The production pouches had a 5°C higher seal-initiation temperature. Our heat-sealer wasn't adjusted. 400 pouches leaked seal integrity tests. Rework cost: $1,200 plus a 9-day delay.
• Error 2 (colleague's): Ordered Bemis Tyvek pouches without specifying the sterilization method. The first lot was EtO-compatible; the second lot (different factory) was gamma-compatible only. The gamma-compatible film couldn't hold the EtO cycle. 3,000 pouches were scrapped.

My checklist now: Always request lot-specific process validation data. Always run a first-article seal test when a new lot arrives. It's annoying. So are failed audits.

7. Is Bemis packaging considered premium, budget, or mid-range?

Mid-to-premium. Bemis competes with the likes of Sealed Air (Cryovac), Berry Global, and Mondi on barrier technology and healthcare certifications. They're not the cheapest option—you can always find a smaller converter for 15–20% less—but they're cheaper than Sealed Air's highest-performance films. The value proposition is consistency and regulatory support. If your application involves food safety audits (SQF, BRC) or medical device compliance, Bemis's documentation is solid. The Amcor connection means access to global manufacturing capacity if you need to scale.

In my experience, the 'premium' price is about 10–15% above the commodity film market but arguably worth it for applications where a failure costs more than the film itself. A leaker in a pouch of sensitive medical device component? That's not a film cost. That's a recall.

Final thought (I said I'd avoid a traditional ending, but here's one anyway)

If you're ordering Bemis packaging for the first time—or transitioning from Bemis to Amcor's system—the single biggest piece of advice I can give is: don't assume the old contact details, pricing structures, or MOQs still apply. Verify everything with your current Amcor rep. Get the minimums in writing. And always run a first-article test on film lot changes. Saves you the embarrassment of explaining to your production manager why 10,000 pouches are heading to the scrap bin.