Smurfit Westrock and Pratt Industries, together with the United Steelworkers (USW) union, have filed petitions seeking duties on corrugated pizza boxes imported from China, Malaysia and Turkey. The U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) has opened the preliminary phase of its investigations.
The American Pizza Boxes Manufacturers Coalition, comprising the two companies, and the USW filed the petitions on September 9, 2026, with the U.S. Department of Commerce and the USITC. The petitioners allege that the imports are materially injuring the domestic industry.
According to a news release from Wiley Rein, the law firm representing the petitioners, import volumes from the three countries increased by 130% between 2023 and 2025 and continued to rise in 2026. The coalition attributes declines in U.S. pizza box production, shipments, profits and employment to these imports.
The petitions seek antidumping duties on imports from all three countries and countervailing duties on imports from Turkey to offset alleged subsidies. Alleged dumping margins range from 96.62% to 568.50% for China, stand at 110.73% for Malaysia, and range from 120.65% to 210.37% for Turkey. These figures are the petitioners’ estimates, not duty rates set by U.S. authorities.
The products covered include finished or unfinished corrugated pizza boxes, whether assembled or unassembled, as well as ready-to-assemble corrugated cardboard die-cut blanks.
In a notice published September 14 in the Federal Register, the USITC confirmed the opening of its preliminary investigations. The commission will determine whether there is a reasonable indication that the imports are materially injuring, or threatening material injury to, the U.S. industry.
A preliminary conference is scheduled for September 30. Unless Commerce extends its deadline for initiating investigations, the USITC must issue its preliminary determination by October 26. The opening of these investigations does not establish that dumping or subsidization has occurred, nor does it impose duties.
