US shipments of food and general line metal cans increased 3.2% year-on-year in 2025, reaching 27.56 billion units, according to the Can Manufacturers Institute’s (CMI) latest quarterly report.

Fourth quarter volumes also edged higher, up 2.0% to 6.33 billion cans compared with the same period in 2024, signalling steady momentum through the end of the year.

Food and pet food continue to drive growth. Food cans accounted for the bulk of volumes, rising 3.8% year-on-year to 24.61 billion units. Within this, vegetables posted the strongest gains, climbing 14.7% to 7.60 billion cans for the year, while pet food shipments increased 3.3% to 9.11 billion.

Coffee cans saw a 6.0% uplift to 79.9 million units, and fruit volumes were broadly flat, dipping 0.3% to 747.3 million. In contrast, soups and miscellaneous foods declined 8.4% to 3.90 billion cans.

On a quarterly basis, food shipments grew 2.9% in Q4 to 5.65 billion cans, with vegetables up 8.8% and pet food up 3.3%.

Two-piece food cans continued to account for the majority of shipments, rising 3.7% year-on-year to 19.36 billion units. Three-piece cans increased 4.4% to 5.25 billion.

General packaging volumes fell 2.3% over the full year to 2.95 billion cans. Aerosol cans – including both steel and aluminium – declined 1.5% to 2.26 billion units, while other non-food categories, such as paint and automotive products, dropped 4.8% to 691.7 million.

In the fourth quarter alone, general packaging shipments were down 5.2% compared with Q4 2024.

Shipments for manufacturers’ own use rose sharply, up 19.7% year-on-year to 1.82 billion cans, although fourth quarter volumes were flat at 358.2 million units.

The CMI report, released on 6 February 2026, is based on data from seven participating companies, with some figures estimated.