MeadWestvaco Corp. will close Louisa plant

MeadWestvaco Corp. is planning to close a manufacturing plant in Louisa County that employs 171 people, as the packaging company continues to restructure its business operations.

The Henrico County-based company filed a notice with the state today that it will close its folding carton plant at 675 Industrial Drive in Louisa. According to the notice, the closing will be effective May 17.

The plant makes plastic and paperboard packaging for personal care and health products.

MeadWestvaco has been restructuring is business operations to cut costs and focus on more profitable product lines as the company deals with the economic recession, which has affected demand for consumer packaging.

The company announced in January that it would eliminate 2,000 jobs -- 10 percent of its worldwide work force -- and close or restructure 12 to 14 of its 53 manufacturing plants worldwide.

The company said the job cuts would include about 75 people from its staff of about 750 employees at its corporate headquarters in Henrico County.

MeadWestvaco has about 2,500 employees in Virginia. It also owns a paper mill in Covington that employs 1,370 people and a paper-converting plant in Low Moor, near Covington, with about 180 employees.