Domtar Corporation is a North American manufacturer of pulp, paper, packaging, tissue and wood products, with operations across North America. The company employs approximately 14,000 people and operates more than 60 manufacturing and converting facilities in the United States and Canada. Domtar is owned by Jackson Wijaya.
Corporate structure Domtar operated as a publicly traded company on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges for several decades before being acquired by in November 2021. Following the acquisition, the company operated as a subsidiary until 2024 when Paper Excellence consolidated its pulp, paper and forest businesses, including Paper Excellence Canada (formerly Catalyst Paper) and Resolute Forest Products, under the Domtar name.
As of 2024, the structure of Domtar reflects the consolidation formerly held by Domtar Corporation, Paper Excellence Canada Holdings Corporation, and Resolute Forest Products.
Domtar also owns and operates Ariva, a distribution network supplying paper, packaging and related products across North America, and EAM (Engineered Absorbent Materials).
Post-Integration Corporate Structure Following the acquisition by Paper Excellence in 2021, Domtar underwent strategic integration with other forest products businesses owned by Paper Excellence, including Resolute Forest Products and Paper Excellence Canada. The combined entity operates under the Domtar name with a unified corporate structure.
Sustainability and Responsibility Domtar has developed a global sustainability strategy aligned by three pillars: Environmental Stewardship, Our People and Communities, and Responsible Business. This strategy includes measurable goals related to emissions reduction, responsible fiber sourcing, water stewardship, biodiversity protection, and workplace safety. Sustainability reporting is published periodically to track progress toward the objectives.
In 2025, Domtar released a post-integration sustainability report documenting progress toward its 2030 sustainability goals, bringing together legacy business reporting frameworks under a unified strategy.
The company also participates in third-party environmental disclosure programs and publishes governance-related reporting on topics such as climate risk, forest certification standards, and supply chain due diligence. 100 percent of Domtar's fiber is sourced in accordance with third-party fiber sourcing standards.
Products and Brands Domtar's product portfolio includes:
Uncoated freesheet and specialty papers, including Cougar®, Lynx®, Husky®, EarthChoice®, Xerox®, Clarion™ brands; Papergrade pulp and fluff pulp; Airlaid nonwovens; 100% recycled container board and packaging medium; Tissue products for retail and away-from-home channels, including Harmony® toilet tissue and paper towels, and Revo® tissue and towel dispensers; Lumber and remanufactured wood products; Distribution services via Ariva.
History Origins in Britain Domtar's origins track back to 1848, when Henry Potter Burt founded Burt, Boulton Holdings Ltd. in England, a company that specialized in treating timber against with creosote to extend its durability. The company expanded internationally and established operations in Canada in the late 19th century.
In 1903, the Dominion Tar and Chemical Company, Limited was formed in Canada, with its first plant in Sydney, Nova Scotia. The company grew rapidly by supplying treated wood and processing coal tar products, securing major industrial contracts and expanding across the country.
Incorporation in Canada In 1929, Dominion Tar and Chemical Company Ltd. was incorporated as a Canadian entity and listed on the Montreal and Toronto stock exchanges. Despite the economic challenges of the Great Depression, the company expanded its operations and diversified into industrial materials, including salt production under the Sifto brand.
During the 1950s, Dominion Tar experienced significant growth through acquisitions and investments, including a strategic move into the pulp and paper industry with the acquisition of Howard Smith Paper Mills. Over time, the company began focusing more heavily on paper manufacturing.
Creation of Domtar In 1961, Dominion Tar merged with several companies, including Howard Smith Paper, St. Lawrence Corporation Limited, and Hinde & Dauch Limited. In 1965, the company was renamed Domtar Ltd. (later changed to Domtar Inc.) and reorganized into multiple operating divisions.
During the following years, Domtar consolidated its pulp and paper operations and gradually shifted its strategic focus toward becoming a paper manufacturing company.
Acquisitions and rationalizations
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Domtar expanded its operations through acquisitions and investments in paper manufacturing, distribution, and forestry activities. At the same time, the company divested several non-core businesses, including consumer products and industrial materials, to focus on paper and packaging.
In 1997, Domtar formed a joint venture with Cascades Inc. called Norampac, a major North American container board and packaging producer. The company continued do grow through acquisitions, including E. B. Eddy Company in 1998 and Ris Paper Company Inc. in 2000.
In 2001, Domtar acquired several paper mills from Georgia-Pacific Corporation, significantly expanding its presence in the North American paper market and becoming one of the largest producers of uncoated freesheet paper in the region .
Merger with Weyerhaeuser
In 2007, Domtar merge with the fine paper business of Weyerhaeuser, creating one of the largest uncoated frees paper manufacturers in North America.a Delaware corporation.
In 2011, Domtar expanded into personal care products through acquisition of Attends Healthcare, a manufacturer of incontinence products. In 2013, the company acquired Xerox's paper businesses in the United States and Canada, becoming the exclusive distributor of Xerox-branded paper products in those marketsDomtar to Acquire Xerox’s U.S. and Canadian Paper Business Retrieved 2013-06-03Enterprise Group What's New - May 2013 Retrieved 2013-06-03. Acquisition by Paper Excellence On May 11, 2021, Paper Excellence announced the acquisition of Domtar Corporation for US$2.8-billion. The transaction marked a significant shift in ownership, transitioning the company from a publicly traded entity to a privately held subsidiary.
Following the acquisition, Domtar was integrated with other forest products businesses owned by Paper Excellence, including Resolute Forest Products, forming a larger, vertically integrated forest products company operating across North America.
Governance and Reporting Domtar maintains corporate governance and sustainability reporting aligned with regulatory frameworks and voluntary disclosure standards. The company publishes governance and sustainability disclosures on its corporate website.
In 2026, Domtar received updated CDP scores reflecting their first disclosure as an integrated company. The company earned an A− score in Forests, a B in Climate Change, a B in Water Security, and an A in Commodities (Timber).
Awards and Recognition In 2025, Domtar's Kingsport, Tennessee mill received the Fred Schmitt Award for Outstanding Corporate Leadership from the National Recycling Coalition in recognition of its leadership in recycling and sustainable manufacturing practices.
Domtar was also recognized by Crayola with the 2025 CARE Award for sustainability collaboration, acknowledging its support in providing environmental performance data and advancing sustainability initiatives within the supply chain.
Community and Environmental Partnerships Domtar has reported engagement in community-based environmental and educational initiatives across its operation regions in Canada and the United States. The company has described partnerships supporting conservation programs, employee volunteerism, and education outreach efforts in local communities near its manufacturing facilities.
In addition, Domtar has participated in industry and stakeholder advisory initiatives focused on sustainable forestry practices and responsible land management.
Environmental issues Nova Scotia The company was originally known as the Dominion Tar and Chemical Company, Limited. Its first plant was located in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.
Dominion Tar and Chemical Company Ltd (Domtar) operated a coal tar refining plant and a coal tar storage facility in Sydney from 1903 to 1962. This facility was situated directly adjacent to and north of the coke oven operations. It diverted coal tar from the coke ovens, refined it, moved it through pipes, and stored it in tanks for shipping elsewhere. Domtar ceased operations in Sydney in 1962 abandoning its storage tanks, waste disposal lagoons, pipes, buildings and equipment. Domtar conducted little or no clean up of the site. A large tank, referred to as the "Domtar tank", remained in place adjacent to the coke ovens site into the 2000s, measuring 28 m (92 ft.) in diameter and 6 m (20 ft.) high. It contained materials abandoned by Domtar and other materials added in the years since the facility's abandonment.
This site, which is located adjacent to the former Sydney Steel plant, is included in a $400 million government sponsored cleanup of what is referred to as the Sydney Tar Ponds.
In 2008 Domtar partnered with WWF as a part of an ongoing effort to help them source their materials responsibly. They are also a long-time member of the Two Sides initiative.
Cornwall Domtar operated a paper mill in Cornwall, Ontario until 2006. The original mill was built by the Toronto Manufacturing Company in 1881 and purchased by Howard Smith Paper Mills in 1919.
In the early 1970s, Domtar persuaded the City of Cornwall to permit the dumping of its paper mill waste (sludge, bark and lime dregs) behind a shopping mall in the middle of the city. Part of the dump was sodded over while dumping continued, and Domtar funded a "bunny" ski hill there, known as "Big Ben".City hopes 'clean' image will save it .
By the late 1980s, Domtar was pumping "an average of 102 million litres of waste water into the St. Lawrence River every day". In May 1988, Greenpeace hung a banner from the company's smokestacks demanding: 'Zero discharge now', referring to discharges of heavy metals, PCBs, phenols, and dioxins. Domtar was "fighting efforts to make it clean up" and it was listed as one of the worst polluters in Ontario in 1989.
By the mid-1990s this Domtar landfill was rapidly filling up with sludge, bark, and lime dregs from the Cornwall kraft and fine paper mill. The problem was exacerbated when new waste water regulations required the Cornwall mill to also remove lignin and starch—formerly discharged into the St. Lawrence River—from its waste water. In response, Domtar began selling dewatered mill waste to Cornwall and area residents labeled as "Soil Conditioner".Domtar soil conditioner - Clearing the water or muddying the question? - Eastern Ontario AgriNews.
For some five years—until high levels of fecal coliforms and fecal streptococcus were discovered in the waste—this "Soil Conditioner" was sold for home garden use and was used by local farmers as fertilizer. Domtar at first claimed that their process could not have contributed e-coli and fecal coli from human feces. The company later revealed to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment (MOE) that some toilets and urinals at the mill connected with the mill's waste water treatment process, rather than with the city's sanitary sewers. Moreover, a stormwater system also emptied into the sludge generating system.Tempest in a Toilet by Wendy Priesnitz. Retrieved 2010-04-23.