27-05-2025
A Glass Plant Shows How US Can Revive Manufacturing
Rising imports of glass containers are just one sign of how the US lost its manufacturing culture. The value of glass-container imports has more than doubled to $1.7 billion in the last two decades from $660 million. The trade deficit for glass containers has tripled to $1.4 billion over the same period.
Local manufacturers of glass containers should have advantages over imports from halfway around the world. The shape of empty bottles, jars and other glass recipients means the shipper is moving a lot of air along with the product. Glass is heavy and obviously breakable, requiring extra packing materials during transportation. Moreover, the raw materials are basic and readily found in the US: sand, limestone and sodium carbonate, more commonly known as soda ash. Blowing glass has been around for millennia, and the industry is often one of the original manufacturing activities of nations. In other words, it has deep local roots.
