Laois timber company leads new European business alliance
Based in Mountrath, CJ Sheeran is Ireland’s largest manufacturer of timber packaging and pallets
A Laois-based company is at the forefront of a new European alliance representing the wooden pallet sector.
CJ Sheeran Group, based in Mountrath, is playing a leading role in the newly established Wood Pallets for Europe Alliance which was launched in Brussels on Thursday, September 17.
The Alliance brings together leading organisations from across Europe’s wooden pallet and packaging sector with the aim of engaging with EU institutions and policymakers with a “single, credible, and influential voice.”
CJ Sheeran is Ireland’s largest manufacturer of timber packaging and pallets. The business is headquartered in Mountrath and has a number of manufacturing, warehousing and distribution depots across the country.
CJ Sheeran Group is one of the founding organisations of the new Alliance alongside Euroblock Verpackungsholz GmbH, Foresco, PGS Group, EPAL and Woodpack Global.
This new Alliance comes following the company’s recent expansion which saw the official opening of a new €6 million logistics and storage facility in Mountrath.
Minister of State Niall Collins opened the new facility which created 15 more jobs with the company. CJ Sheeran is one of the largest employers in the Midlands, with 465 staff members.
The Laois-based business also opened a new base in Manchester earlier this year.
The CJ Sheeran Group Director, Ashleigh Doyle, has been appointed as Vice-Chair of Wood Pallets for Europe. CJ Sheeran’s Mark Sheeran, Managing Director, and Fergal Moran, Business Development Director, are also members of the Alliance.
Its membership manufactures, repairs, and manages a significant share of wooden pallets in circulation across Europe, supporting resilient, circular, and efficient supply chains across Europe and beyond.
The Alliance will engage in data-driven advocacy to build awareness of wooden pallets' inherent sustainability, taking into account the unique characteristics and benefits of wood as a natural, renewable, and sustainable material, while seeking to prevent legislation that disproportionately affects wooden pallets.
The Alliance will engage with EU institutions and policymakers on issues affecting the wooden pallet sector, with a particular focus on sustainability, circular economy policy and the role of wooden pallets within European supply chains.
According to a spokesperson for CJ Sheeran, “the initiative represents an opportunity for a Laois-based Irish company to have a voice in European-level discussions and contribute its industry expertise to the policy conversation in Brussels.”
Commenting on the new Alliance, Chair of Wood Pallets for Europe, Jan Ponnet, said: “Europe already has a proven circular success story in wooden pallets. Built on extensive reuse, repair, refurbishment, and ultimately recycling into secondary products, our sector demonstrates how renewable materials can support both competitiveness and sustainability.
“As Europe advances its circular economy agenda, we look forward to contributing our expertise to ensure future legislation reflects the specific characteristics of wood and supports the diverse circular systems that keep European supply chains moving.”