OUR HISTORY
“From garage workshop to the entire world”: in a nutshell, that sums up the history of Fanti Packaging. Now a small multinational, the company was established in Bologna (Italy) at the end of the 1940s (1948) from a far-sighted idea by its founder, Giorgio Fanti. During the Second World War, the Americans left some food for the Italians, including cans of meat that remained empty on the ground: Giorgio Fanti collected them and had the intuition to give them a second life, converting them into packaging for the chemical industry.
1948
This was the period during which the American troops were stationed in Italy following the country’s liberation from Nazi occupation during the Second World War. As they made their way through the nation, US soldiers handed out food to the Italians, including cans of meat. While their contents were enthusiastically consumed to appease empty stomachs, the cans were often left abandoned on the ground. What Giorgio Fanti did was pick them up, planning to give them a second life, which he did in his garage at Via Lino, n.8, where – with the help of a lathe and a few tools – he upcycled them into paint cans for paint shops. That was how the Giorgio Fanti S.p.A. adventure, laying the foundations for the great family group that is now Fanti Packaging.
The positive response to Giorgio Fanti ‘s upcycling hunch quickly led to forays into other areas. So, he then cleared all the empty food cans from the stocks left over from the war and turned these into paint cans too, until he was finally able to purchase his first pack of tinplate, the raw material he needed but still from stocks of wartime leftovers.
1949
1952
1952 marked a milestone in the company’s journey from development to consolidation. It was this year that Fanti purchased its first automatic machine for assembling tinplate cans. And it was this year that marked the end of Fanti’s history as a small local producer and the start of a journey of growth and development that we are still making today.
The company’s expansion quickly made new premises essential and after a few relocations, Giorgio Fanti found the site that housed the company ever since, at via del Lavoro, n. 97 in Casalecchio di Reno (Bologna, Italy).
1969
THE ’80s
These were key years for Fanti Packaging, which began looking beyond national borders and focusing on exports. It embarked on an internationalisation strategy enabled by synergies with new companies that joined the Fanti family in various capacities.
The acquisition of a majority share in I.C.M. Industria Contenitori Metallici dates back to 1990, when the company – based in Montechiarugolo (Parma, Italy) and specialising in the production of tapered tinplate buckets – joined the group. It now trades under the name Fanti I.C.M. An acquisition that marked the first step towards the expansion of the range and towards development through new experiences and leadership positions in new geographical areas.
1990
1999
G.I.I – Gruppo Italiano Imballaggi was founded in 1999 in Romania and began producing pots in a factory located in Bucharest. Now known as Fanti Romania G.I.I., it was the first real link to Eastern Europe.
Putting its production and commercial expertise to ever greater use, Fanti built a European network. In 2007, a sales partnership forged with Blechwarenfabrik Limburg GmbH – one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of tinplate packaging for the main line led to the foundation of ICE – Innovative Canmakers Europe.
2007
2015
As it acquired an ever more extensive market presence, Fanti began expanding its production range through, among other actions, a series of targeted acquisitions. Plastic packaging marked the next milestone in the company’s production history. Fanti acquired the Verni family’s share and established P. Cans S.r.l. to specialise in the production of plastic buckets and pails.
Within the field of plastic packaging, hybrid pots are undoubtedly a crucial addition that Fanti intends to make to its product range, which is why a specific manufacturing firm, Polibox Italiana (run by the Rosso family), was acquired.
2017
2018
In 2018, with the acquisition of food tin and can manufacturer Venegoni, Fanti expanded its business still further, venturing into the food and beverages market with a new brand, Fanti Venegoni.
2022 marks the official establishment of Fanti Packaging, the family holding company that unites all the group’s companies, enhancing resources and synergies.
2022
2022
In the same year, the arrival of Fanti Plast, from the merger of P. Cans and Polibox Italiana, converged and synergised the production of plastic and hybrid packaging within Fanti Packaging.
With the acquisition of Industrias Sanz, now Fanti España, Fanti Packaging expanded and formalised its network in the Iberian market, enhancing its service and product offerings to customers.
2023
2024
Fanti Packaging embarked on a major overseas venture by inaugurating a new production facility in West Virginia (USA) dedicated to producing metal pots under the Fanti USA brand, thus entering an exciting new market.
OCM – an established company based in Gruaro (Venice, Italy), run by the D’Agnolo family, and specialising in metal packaging – joined the Fanti Packaging family. Operating from two plants (in Gruaro and San Martino di Lupari), OCM joined Fanti Packaging to ensure a greater competitive edge in the food and coffee market, leveraging is long-term partnership with well-known coffee brand illycaffè S.p.A.
2024
OUR HISTORY
“From garage workshop to the entire world”: in a nutshell, that sums up the history of Fanti Packaging. Now a small multinational, the company was established in Bologna (Italy) at the end of the 1940s (1948) from a far-sighted idea by its founder, Giorgio Fanti. During the Second World War, the Americans left some food for the Italians, including cans of meat that remained empty on the ground: Giorgio Fanti collected them and had the intuition to give them a second life, converting them into packaging for the chemical industry.
1948
This was the period during which the American troops were stationed in Italy following the country’s liberation from Nazi occupation during the Second World War. As they made their way through the nation, US soldiers handed out food to the Italians, including cans of meat. While their contents were enthusiastically consumed to appease empty stomachs, the cans were often left abandoned on the ground. What Giorgio Fanti did was pick them up, planning to give them a second life, which he did in his garage at Via Lino, n.8, where – with the help of a lathe and a few tools – he upcycled them into paint cans for paint shops. That was how the Giorgio Fanti S.p.A. adventure, laying the foundations for the great family group that is now Fanti Packaging.
1949
The positive response to Giorgio Fanti ‘s upcycling hunch quickly led to forays into other areas. So, he then cleared all the empty food cans from the stocks left over from the war and turned these into paint cans too, until he was finally able to purchase his first pack of tinplate, the raw material he needed but still from stocks of wartime leftovers.
1952
1952 marked a milestone in the company’s journey from development to consolidation. It was this year that Fanti purchased its first automatic machine for assembling tinplate cans. And it was this year that marked the end of Fanti’s history as a small local producer and the start of a journey of growth and development that we are still making today.
1969
The company’s expansion quickly made new premises essential and after a few relocations, Giorgio Fanti found the site that housed the company ever since, at via del Lavoro, n. 97 in Casalecchio di Reno (Bologna, Italy).
THE ’80s
These were key years for Fanti Packaging, which began looking beyond national borders and focusing on exports. It embarked on an internationalisation strategy enabled by synergies with new companies that joined the Fanti family in various capacities.
1990
The acquisition of a majority share in I.C.M. Industria Contenitori Metallici dates back to 1990, when the company – based in Montechiarugolo (Parma, Italy) and specialising in the production of tapered tinplate buckets – joined the group. It now trades under the name Fanti I.C.M. An acquisition that marked the first step towards the expansion of the range and towards development through new experiences and leadership positions in new geographical areas.
1999
G.I.I – Gruppo Italiano Imballaggi was founded in 1999 in Romania and began producing pots in a factory located in Bucharest. Now known as Fanti Romania G.I.I., it was the first real link to Eastern Europe.
2007
Putting its production and commercial expertise to ever greater use, Fanti built a European network. In 2007, a sales partnership forged with Blechwarenfabrik Limburg GmbH – one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of tinplate packaging for the main line led to the foundation of ICE – Innovative Canmakers Europe.
2015
As it acquired an ever more extensive market presence, Fanti began expanding its production range through, among other actions, a series of targeted acquisitions. Plastic packaging marked the next milestone in the company’s production history. Fanti acquired the Verni family’s share and established P. Cans S.r.l. to specialise in the production of plastic buckets and pails.
2017
Within the field of plastic packaging, hybrid pots are undoubtedly a crucial addition that Fanti intends to make to its product range, which is why a specific manufacturing firm, Polibox Italiana (run by the Rosso family), was acquired.
2018
In 2018, with the acquisition of food tin and can manufacturer Venegoni, Fanti expanded its business still further, venturing into the food and beverages market with a new brand, Fanti Venegoni.
2022
2022 marks the official establishment of Fanti Packaging, the family holding company that unites all the group’s companies, enhancing resources and synergies.
2022
In the same year, the arrival of Fanti Plast, from the merger of P. Cans and Polibox Italiana, converged and synergised the production of plastic and hybrid packaging within Fanti Packaging.
2023
With the acquisition of Industrias Sanz, now Fanti España, Fanti Packaging expanded and formalised its network in the Iberian market, enhancing its service and product offerings to customers.
2024
Fanti Packaging embarked on a major overseas venture by inaugurating a new production facility in West Virginia (USA) dedicated to producing metal pots under the Fanti USA brand, thus entering an exciting new market.
2024
OCM – an established company based in Gruaro (Venice, Italy), run by the D’Agnolo family, and specialising in metal packaging – joined the Fanti Packaging family. Operating from two plants (in Gruaro and San Martino di Lupari), OCM joined Fanti Packaging to ensure a greater competitive edge in the food and coffee market, leveraging is long-term partnership with well-known coffee brand illycaffè S.p.A.