RYAM Indefinitely Suspends Production at Temiscaming Pulp and Board mill in Canada

Rayonier Advanced Materials (RYAM) has indefinitely suspended production at its Temiscaming pulp and board mill in Québec, Canada, affecting around 300 workers, according to Canadian trade union Unifor.

Production officially halted on 4 October after weeks of uncertainty and a postponement of the originally planned shutdown. RYAM had initially scheduled the closure for 15 September, but additional orders allowed the mill to continue operating until 3 October. A small number of employees will remain on site to maintain essential operations, Unifor said.

The Temiscaming mill has an annual production capacity of 180,000 tonnes of folding boxboard and 290,000 tonnes of hardwood-based high-yield pulp. Around 60,000 tonnes of the pulp were used internally. The site also previously produced high-purity cellulose, but that production was permanently discontinued in the first quarter of 2026.

RYAM announced the planned shutdown in early August, citing difficult market conditions for both pulp and folding boxboard. The company said the situation had been exacerbated by additional US tariffs on Canadian goods. Around 75% of the folding boxboard produced at Temiscaming was exported to the US, according to RYAM.

The suspension comes amid growing production curtailments across Canada's forestry sector, a trend Unifor said it was monitoring with concern.

The union said it remained committed to finding a future for the Temiscaming site. Several scenarios are under consideration to secure the mill's future and potentially restart operations, Unifor said, adding that these options would now be explored.