SCHEDULE 14A

(Rule 14a-101)

Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No.      )

Filed by the Registrant  x

---

(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)

---

(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)

SONOCO PRODUCTS COMPANY

1 NORTH SECOND STREET

HARTSVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA 29550 USA

March 20, 2006                      

To Our Shareholders:

      You are cordially invited to attend our Annual Shareholders’ Meeting to be held at the Center Theater, 212 North Fifth Street, Hartsville, South Carolina, on Wednesday, April 19, 2006, at 11:00 a.m.

      We have enclosed a Notice of 2006 Annual Meeting of Shareholders and Proxy Statement that cover the details of matters to be presented at the meeting.

      In addition to acting on the matters listed in the Notice of Annual Meeting of Shareholders, we will discuss the Company’s progress, and you will be given an opportunity to ask questions of general interest to all shareholders.

      We have also enclosed a copy of our 2005 Annual Report, which reviews the Company’s past year’s events and discusses strategy and the outlook for the future (or we have delivered one copy of the Annual Report for all shareholders at your address).

      We hope that you will come to the 2006 Annual Meeting of Shareholders in person; however, even if you plan to attend, we strongly encourage you to complete the enclosed proxy card and return it to us in the enclosed business reply envelope. Or, you can vote by telephone (if you live in the United States or Canada) or via the Internet. Instructions are shown on your proxy card. If you are a shareholder of record and later find you can be present or if for any reason you desire to revoke your proxy, you can do so at any time before the voting. Your vote is important and will be greatly appreciated.

NOTICE OF 2006 ANNUAL

SHAREHOLDERS’ MEETING

and

PROXY STATEMENT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SONOCO PRODUCTS COMPANY

1 NORTH SECOND STREET

HARTSVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA 29550 USA

NOTICE OF 2006 ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS

March 20, 2006

SONOCO PRODUCTS COMPANY

1 NORTH SECOND STREET

HARTSVILLE, SOUTH CAROLINA 29550 USA

PROXY STATEMENT

INFORMATION CONCERNING THE SOLICITATION

      We are sending you these proxy materials in connection with the solicitation by the Board of Directors of Sonoco Products Company of proxies to be used at the Annual Meeting of Shareholders (“Annual Meeting”) to be held on Wednesday, April 19, 2006, at 11:00 a.m. at The Center Theater, 212 North Fifth Street, Hartsville, S.C., and at any adjournment or postponement of the meeting. “We,” “our,” “us,” “Sonoco” and “the Company” all refer to Sonoco Products Company. The proxy materials are being mailed on or about March 20, 2006.

Who May Vote

      You will only be entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting if our records show that you held your shares on February 17, 2006. At the close of business on February 17, 2006, a total of 100,584,498 shares of Common Stock were outstanding and entitled to vote. Each share of Common Stock has one vote.

Voting by Proxy

      If your shares are held by a broker, bank or other nominee, it will send you instructions that you must follow to have your shares voted at the Annual Meeting. If you hold your shares in your own name as a record holder, you may instruct the proxy agents how to vote your shares by completing, signing, dating and mailing the proxy card in the enclosed postage-paid envelope; by dialing the toll-free telephone number shown on your proxy card (if you live in the United States or Canada); or by accessing the Web site shown on your proxy card. Of course, you can always attend the meeting and vote your shares in person.

      The proxy agents will vote your shares as you instruct. If you sign and return your proxy card without giving instructions, the proxy agents will vote your shares FOR each person named in this Proxy Statement as a nominee for election to the Board of Directors. The proxy agents will vote according to their best judgment on any other matter that properly comes before the Annual Meeting. At present, the Board of Directors does not know of any other such matters.

How to Revoke Your Proxy

      You may revoke your proxy at any time before it is voted. If you hold your shares in your own name as a record shareholder, you may revoke your proxy in any of the following ways:

      Subsequent voting by telephone or via the Internet cancels your previous vote. If you are a shareholder of record, you may also attend the meeting and vote in person, in which case your proxy vote will not be used.

      If your shares are held in street name by a broker, bank or other nominee, you may revoke your voting instructions by submitting new voting instructions to the broker or other nominee who holds your shares.

How Votes Will Be Counted

      The Annual Meeting will be held if a majority of the outstanding shares of Common Stock entitled to vote (a “quorum”) is represented at the meeting. If you have submitted valid proxy instructions or attend the meeting in person, your shares will be counted for the purpose of determining whether there is a quorum, even if you wish to abstain from voting on some or all matters introduced. “Broker non-votes” also count in determining whether a quorum is present. A “broker non-vote” occurs when a broker, bank or nominee who holds shares for a beneficial owner attends the meeting in person or by proxy but does not vote on a particular proposal because the broker, bank or nominee does not have discretionary voting power for that proposal and has not received voting instructions from the beneficial owner.

      If a quorum is present at the Annual Meeting, directors will be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by shares present and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. Votes that are withheld or that are not voted in the election of directors will have no effect on the outcome of the election. Cumulative voting is not permitted.

      Approval of any other matter that may be brought before the meeting requires that the votes cast in favor of the matter exceed the votes cast against the matter. Votes that are withheld or shares that are not voted will have no effect on the outcome of such matters.

Cost of this Proxy Solicitation

      We will pay the cost of this proxy solicitation. In addition to soliciting proxies by mail, we expect that some of our officers and regular employees will solicit proxies by telephone, fax, email or personal contact. None of these officers or employees will receive any additional or special compensation for doing this.

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

      The Board of Directors has fixed the number of directors of the Company at 15. At our Annual Meeting, six directors will be elected. Messrs. H.E. DeLoach, Jr., E.H. Lawton, III, J.M. Micali and J.E. Linville and Dr. P.L. Davies have been nominated to hold office for the next three years, their terms expiring at the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting in 2009, or when their successors are duly elected and qualify to serve. Mr. M.D. Oken, who was elected by the Board of Directors in February 2006 to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Mr. C.W. Coker, has been nominated to hold office for the next two years. His term will expire at the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting in 2008, or when his successor is duly elected and qualified to serve. The proxy agents intend to vote FOR the election of the six persons named above unless you withhold authority to vote for all or any of the nominees. The Board of Directors recommends that you vote FOR each nominee for election.

      The Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee recommends to the Board of Directors nominees to fill vacancies on the Board of Directors as they occur and recommends candidates for election as directors at Annual Meetings of Shareholders. Mr. Oken was nominated to become a director through this process by the independent directors of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee. Mr. Oken was recommended to the Committee by one of our current non-management directors. See page 19 for further information regarding Sonoco’s procedures for nominating directors.

INFORMATION CONCERNING DIRECTORS WHOSE TERMS CONTINUE

      Members of the Board of Directors whose terms of office will continue until our Annual Shareholders’ Meeting in 2007 are:

      Members of the Board of Directors whose terms of office will continue until our Annual Shareholders’ Meeting in 2008 are:

DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE POLICIES

      Our listing agreement with the New York Stock Exchange requires that at least a majority of the members of our Board of Directors be independent. Under the Exchange’s standards, “independent” means that a director has been determined by the Board to have no material relationship with Sonoco (either directly or as a partner, shareholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with Sonoco). To assist us in making these determinations we have adopted the following guidelines, which are also the guidelines set forth in the New York Stock Exchange Listing Standards.

      A director will not be considered independent if:

      The following relationships will not be considered to be material relationships that would impair a director’s independence:

      Based on the stated criteria and the New York Stock Exchange’s independence standards, the Board of Directors has determined that the following directors, who constitute a majority of the Board, are independent:

      All of the members of the Audit Committee, the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, and the Executive Compensation Committee have also been determined to be independent under the New York Stock Exchange Listing Standards.

MEETINGS OF NON-MANAGEMENT DIRECTORS

      Our non-management directors meet at regularly scheduled executive sessions without management present. The presiding director for each meeting is elected by those directors in attendance at that meeting. Shareholders and other interested parties may communicate with the non-management directors by writing to Non-Management Directors, c/o Corporate Secretary, Sonoco Products Company, 1 North Second Street, Hartsville, SC 29550 USA.

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE GUIDELINES AND

CODE OF BUSINESS CONDUCT AND ETHICS

      We have adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines and a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics for directors, officers and employees. Copies of these governance guidelines and the Code of Business Conduct are available through our Web site at www.sonoco.com. Printed versions are available to our shareholders on request to the Corporate Secretary, Sonoco Products Company, 1 North Second Street, Hartsville, SC 29550 USA.

BOARD COMMITTEES AND MEETINGS

      During 2005, the Board of Directors held four regularly scheduled meetings and one special meeting to review significant developments affecting the Company and to act on matters requiring the Board of Directors’ approval. To assist it in performing its duties, the Board of Directors has established the six committees discussed below.

      All committees operate pursuant to written charters. The charters are available to shareholders through the Investor Relations page of our Web site at www.sonoco.com. These charters are also available in print to any shareholder upon request to the Corporate Secretary, Sonoco Products Company, 1 North Second Street, Hartsville, SC 29550 USA. Each member of the Audit, Corporate Governance and Nominating, and Executive Compensation committees has been determined by the Board of Directors to be independent, as defined in the New York Stock Exchange’s listing standards as adopted in November 2004.

      During 2005, all directors attended 75% or more of the aggregate number of meetings of the Board of Directors and committees of which they were members, except Mr. Brown (who attended 71%).

      The Company encourages, but does not require, its directors to attend the Annual Meeting of Shareholders. In 2005, fifteen of sixteen directors attended the Annual Meeting.

Director Nomination Process

      The Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee recommends to the Board of Directors nominees to fill vacancies on the Board of Directors as they occur, and recommends candidates for election as directors at Annual Meetings of Shareholders. Such candidates are routinely identified through personal and business relationships and contacts of the directors and executive officers.

      In recommending candidates, the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee evaluates such factors as it deems appropriate based on the Company’s current needs. These factors may include diversity, age, skills such as understanding of appropriate technologies and general finance, decision-making ability, interpersonal skills, experience with businesses and other organizations of comparable size, and the inter-relationship between the candidate’s experience and business background and other Board members’ experience and business background. Additionally, candidates for director should possess the highest personal and professional ethics, and they should be committed to the long-term interests of the shareholders.

      The Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee will consider director candidates recommended by shareholders, if the shareholders comply with the following requirements. If you wish to recommend a director candidate to the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee for consideration as a Board of Directors’ nominee, you must submit in writing to the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee your recommended candidate’s name, a brief resume setting forth the recommended candidate’s business and educational background and qualifications for service, and a notarized consent signed by the recommended candidate stating the recommended candidate’s willingness to be nominated and to serve. This information must be delivered to the Chairperson of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee at the Company’s address and must be received no later than January 5 in any year to be considered by the Committee as a potential Board of Directors’ nominee. The Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee may request further information if it determines a potential candidate may be an appropriate nominee. Director candidates recommended by shareholders that comply with these requirements will receive the same consideration that the Committee’s other candidates receive.

      Director candidates recommended by shareholders will not be considered by the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee for election at an annual meeting unless the shareholder recommendations are received no later than January 5 of the year of the meeting. In addition to making such recommendations, shareholders have the right to nominate candidates for election as directors at an annual meeting if they make a written nomination at least 60 days prior to the meeting. Any such nomination should be submitted to the Company’s address. No such nominations have been made for this Annual Meeting.

DIRECTORS’ COMPENSATION

      Employee directors do not receive any additional compensation for serving on the Board of Directors. Compensation for non-employee directors is summarized below.

      2005 Program. In 2005, non-employee directors were paid a $12,500 quarterly retainer and a fee of $1,500 for each Board of Directors and committee meeting attended. Committee chairs received an additional $500 per committee meeting. Effective July 1, 2004, the Audit Committee chair began receiving a committee chair retainer of $1,250 per quarter. Directors could elect to defer part or all of their 2005 retainer and meeting fees. Such elections had to be made in the prior calendar year. Directors could choose to have their deferrals earn interest credits at a market rate (the Merrill Lynch Ten-year High Quality Bond Index) or be treated as if invested in equivalent units of Sonoco Common Stock (which are credited with reinvested dividend equivalents). Alternatively, directors could elect to receive stock options under the 1996 Non-employee Directors’ Stock Plan (the “Directors’ Plan”) instead of receiving any part of their cash compensation. If a director chose this alternative, he or she received an option to purchase $4 worth of Common Stock at the fair market value of the Common Stock on the date the option was granted for each $1 of cash compensation the director chose not to receive. During 2005, no directors were issued stock options instead of cash compensation.

      As in prior years, at the first regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Directors during a calendar year, each non-employee director was granted options to purchase shares of Common Stock at an exercise price equal to the fair market value of the common stock as of the date the options were granted. In 2005, each director was granted options to purchase 5,000 shares. Options are immediately vested but may not be exercised until one year after the grant date.

      2006 Program. In an effort to bring the Sonoco plan in line with emerging compensation practices for non-employee directors, the Board of Directors approved significant changes to the director compensation program effective January 1, 2006.

      These changes were based on comparisons of Sonoco to national surveys of director compensation, surveys of companies in our industry, an independent study and recommendations by an outside consultant.

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE INTERLOCKS AND INSIDER PARTICIPATION

      Members of the Executive Compensation Committee during the year ended December 31, 2005 were:

      Mr. Fulton is a director of Bank of America Corporation. During the third quarter of 2004, a Bank of America subsidiary managed the syndication and participated as agent to provide a five-year committed revolving line of credit for $350,000,000 to support our commercial paper program and for general corporate purposes. Bank of America’s commitment to this facility is $36,000,000. A committed line of credit from Bank of America has been in place since 1987 and has been renewed, amended and increased or decreased according to our needs. Bank of America has extended other lines of credit to us as support for letters of credit, overdrafts and other corporate needs. It also provides treasury management services to us. We pay fees to the bank for these services and for the availability of the lines of credit, as well as interest on any borrowed funds.

      All transactions were handled on a competitive basis. Management believes that the rates and provisions were as favorable to us as we could have obtained from similar sources.

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS

      Mr. Paul Fulton is a director of Bank of America Corporation. See “Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation” for information about our transactions with Bank of America.

      Mr. R.J. Brown is a director of Wachovia Corporation. Wachovia Bank, N.A., a subsidiary of Wachovia Corporation, committed $36,000,000 to the revolving line of credit syndicated by Bank of America to support our commercial paper program and for general corporate purposes. Wachovia Bank, N.A. also provides other lines of credit to support stand-by letters of credit, and it provides trustee services. We pay fees to Wachovia Bank, N.A. for the availability of the credit lines and for the trustee services, as well as interest on any borrowed funds. A subsidiary of Wachovia Corporation is also providing services to us in connection with the share repurchase program announced in December 2005.

      Our management believes the prices and terms of the transactions reported above were comparable to those we could have obtained from other sources. We anticipate engaging in similar business transactions in 2006. The Board of Directors considered these relationships when making its determinations of independence.

      During 2005, the Company employed family members of two of the directors of the Company. Charles W. Coker, Jr., currently Division VP/General Manager of the Flexible Packaging Division, Thomas L. Coker, formerly Division VP/General Manager of the Flexible Packaging Division, and R. Howard Coker, currently Division VP/General Manager of Sonoco Phoenix, are sons of retired director Charles W. Coker. Their 2005 earnings were $336 thousand, $258 thousand, and $252 thousand, respectively. John W. DeLoach, Plant Manager in the Recovered Paper Division, Harris E. DeLoach, III, also Plant Manager in the Recovered Paper Division, and Jeanette D. Florence, Senior Organization Development Specialist, are sons and daughter of Harris E. DeLoach, Jr., Chairman, President and CEO. Their 2005 earnings were $71 thousand, $64 thousand and $63 thousand, respectively. Each of these employees also received the usual employee benefits available to all employees at their levels.

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS

      The following table shows information as of December 31, 2005, about persons known to us to be the beneficial owners of more than 5% of our Common Shares. This information was obtained from Schedules 13G and 13F filed by the entities named below with the SEC, and we have not independently verified it.

SECTION 16(a) BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP REPORTING COMPLIANCE

      Our directors and executive officers are required to file reports with the SEC and the New York Stock Exchange showing the number of shares of any class of our equity securities they owned when they became a director or executive officer, and, after that, any changes in their ownership of our securities. These reports are required by Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

      Based on a review of Section 16(a) reports and any written representations made to us, it appears that all such filings for 2005 were made in a timely manner, except:

      Director F.L.H. Coker inadvertently failed to timely report one transaction on Form 4, which he subsequently filed approximately two weeks late.

      Executive Vice President Charles L. Sullivan, Jr. failed to timely report three transactions on Form 4 due to administrative error. The forms were subsequently filed between one and two months late.

      Senior Vice President Cynthia A. Hartley inadvertently filed one Form 4 late due to administrative error. The corrected form was filed as soon as the error was discovered.

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF MANAGEMENT

      The following table shows the number of shares beneficially owned as of February 15, 2006, directly or indirectly, by each director and by each executive officer named in the Summary Compensation Table.

       On April 15, 2003, the Board of Directors adopted a resolution establishing stock ownership guidelines for outside directors. The guidelines establish a target level of ownership of Sonoco Products Company Common Stock based on years of service as a director from the date the guidelines were established. The guidelines are as follows: 3,000 shares, 5,000 shares and 8,000 shares after two, four and six years of service, respectively.

COMPARATIVE COMPANY PERFORMANCE

      The following line graph compares cumulative total shareholder return, assuming the reinvestment of dividends, for the Company with the cumulative total return of the S&P 500 Stock Index and a nationally recognized industry index, the Dow Jones U.S. Containers & Packaging Group (which includes the Company), from December 31, 2000, through December 31, 2005. The graph assumes that $100 was invested on December 31, 2000, in Sonoco Products Company Common Stock, the S&P 500 Stock Index and the Dow Jones Containers & Packaging Group.

COMPARISON OF FIVE-YEAR CUMULATIVE TOTAL RETURN

AMONG SONOCO PRODUCTS COMPANY, THE S&P 500 INDEX

AND THE DOW JONES U.S. CONTAINERS & PACKAGING INDEX

SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE

LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PLANS — AWARDS IN LAST FISCAL YEAR

      Awards are made in the form of performance-contingent stock units. The vesting of awards is tied to growth in earnings (cumulative EPS) and improved capital effectiveness (average RONAE) over a three-year period as described in the Compensation Committee’s Report that begins on page 26. Both measures are exclusive of the impact of year-to-year change in pension expense (income), net of normal service cost

measures. For two-thirds of the designated shares, threshold vesting is earned if three-year cumulative EPS is 96.28% of target, and maximum vesting is earned if three-year cumulative EPS is 107.80% or more of target. For the remaining one-third of designated shares, three targets have been established for average RONAE, depending on the amount of capital the Company invests in acquisitions during the three-year performance period. For the RONAE targets, threshold vesting is earned if three-year average performance is from 94.44% to 95.00% of target, and maximum vesting is earned if three-year average performance is from 105.00% to 105.56% of target. For all measures, the target shares vest when performance is 100% of target. If less than the threshold number of stock units vest at the end of the three-year performance period, the remaining number of threshold shares will vest after five years (December 31, 2009).

OPTION EXERCISES IN LAST FISCAL YEAR

AND FISCAL YEAR-END OPTION VALUES

OPTION GRANTS IN LAST FISCAL YEAR

PENSION PLAN TABLE

      Named executive officers participate in a non-contributory defined benefit supplemental executive retirement plan program which provides for a maximum annual lifetime retirement benefit equal to 60% of final average compensation computed as a straight-life annuity, based on the highest three of the last seven calendar years. In order to receive the full benefit, the executive must have at least 15 years of service and retire no earlier than age 65. Eligible spouses (married one year or longer at the executive’s retirement date) receive survivor benefits at a rate of 75% of the benefit paid to the executives. The total benefit provided by the Company is offset by 100% of primary U.S. Social Security.

AUDIT COMMITTEE REPORT

      The Audit Committee of the Board of Directors has reviewed and discussed with management and our independent auditors PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PWC”) our audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2005. The Audit Committee has discussed with PWC the matters required to be discussed by Statement on Auditing Standards No. 61, as amended, (“Communication with Audit Committees”) and Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Auditing Standard No. 2, (“An Audit of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting Performed in Conjunction with an Audit of Financial Statements”). The Committee has received the written disclosures and the letter from PWC required by Independence Standards Board Standard No. 1 (“Independence Discussions with Audit Committees”), as may be modified or supplemented, and has discussed with PWC such firm’s independence. The Committee has also reviewed the services provided by PWC discussed below, and has considered whether provision of such services is compatible with maintaining auditor independence.

      During the year 2005, management updated the documentation and completed the testing and evaluation of the Company’s system of internal control over financial reporting in response to the requirements set forth in Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and related regulations. The Audit Committee was kept apprised of the progress of the evaluation and provided oversight and advice to management during the process. In connection with this oversight, the Committee received periodic updates provided by management and PWC at each regularly scheduled Committee meeting. At the conclusion of the process, management provided the Committee with a report on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Committee also reviewed Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting, as well as PWC’s Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm, which were included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, as filed with the SEC. PWC’s report related to its audit of (i) the consolidated financial statements, (ii) management’s assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, and (iii) the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting. The Committee continues to oversee the Company’s efforts related to its internal control over financial reporting and management’s preparations for the evaluation in fiscal 2006.

      Based on the review and discussions referenced above, the Audit Committee recommended to the Board of Directors that the audited financial statements be included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, for filing with the SEC.

T.E. Whiddon (Chair), J.L. Coker, P.L. Davies, C.C. Fort,

E.H. Lawton, III, J.M. Micali, M.D. Oken

INDEPENDENT AUDITORS

      PWC served as the Company’s principal auditors for 2005. The Audit Committee has tentatively selected PWC to serve as the Company’s principal auditors for 2006, pending agreement over the terms of their engagement.

      Representatives of PWC will be present and available to answer appropriate questions at the Annual Meeting and may make a statement if they wish.

Fees Paid to PWC

      The following table sets forth a summary of fees billed by PWC for professional services rendered in connection with the consolidated financial statements and reports for the years ended December 31, 2005 and 2004 and for other services rendered during 2005 and 2004 on behalf of the Company and its subsidiaries:

      Audit Fees: Audit fees include fees billed for professional services rendered for the audit of the Company’s consolidated financial statements and review of the interim condensed consolidated financial statements included in quarterly reports and services that are normally provided by PWC in connection with statutory and regulatory filings or engagements. (Note that approximately 50% of the audit fees relate to audits outside of the United States with statutory audits performed in 18 countries.) Audit Fees also include services provided to the Company in connection with its compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Approximately $830 thousand and $978 thousand of the fiscal 2005 and 2004 audit fees relate to Section 404 work.

      Audit-related Fees: Audit-related fees include fees billed for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of the Company’s consolidated financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.” These services include employee benefit plan audits, due-diligence and accounting consultations in connection with acquisitions and divestitures, attest services that are not required by statute or regulation and consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting standards.

      Tax Fees: Tax fees include fees for tax compliance/preparation and other tax services. Tax compliance/preparation includes fees billed for professional services related to federal, state and international tax compliance, assistance with tax audits and appeals, expatriate tax services and assistance related to the impact of mergers, acquisitions and divestitures on tax return preparation. Other tax services include fees billed for ongoing assistance with tax consulting and planning.

Audit Committee Pre-approval of Audit and Permissible Non-audit Services of Independent Auditors

      The Audit Committee pre-approves all audit and permitted non-audit services (including the fees and terms of such services) provided by the independent auditors, subject to limited exceptions for non-audit services described in Section 10A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are approved by the Audit Committee prior to completion of the audit. The Committee Chairperson is empowered to pre-

approve PWC services between meetings, provided all such services are brought to the Committee at its next regularly scheduled meeting. General pre-approval of certain audit, audit-related and tax services is granted by the Committee at the first quarter Committee meeting. The Committee subsequently reviews fees paid. Specific pre-approval is required for all other services. These projects are reviewed quarterly, and the status of all such services is reviewed with the Committee. During 2005, all audit and permitted non-audit services were pre-approved by the Committee.

Change of Auditors by Sonoco Savings Plan

      On April 7, 2005, the Sonoco Savings Plan (the “Plan”) dismissed PWC as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Plan. This change pertains only to the financial statements of the Plan and does not affect PWC’s engagement as the independent registered public accounting firm of Sonoco Products Company for its 2005 fiscal year. The reports of PWC on the financial statements of the Plan as of and for the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002 did not contain an adverse opinion or disclaimer of opinion, nor were they qualified or modified as to uncertainty, audit scope or accounting principle. During the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002 and through April 7, 2005, there were no disagreements with PWC on any matter of accounting principles or practices, financial statement disclosure or auditing scope of procedure, which disagreements, if not resolved to the satisfaction of PWC, would have caused PWC to make reference to the subject matter of the disagreement in connection with its reports on the Plan’s financial statements for such years. During the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002 and through April 7, 2005, there were no “reportable events” with respect to the Plan as that term is defined in Item 304(a)(1)(v) of Regulation S-K.

      On April 20, 2005, the Plan appointed McGladrey & Pullen, LLP (“M&P”) as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Plan for the year ended December 31, 2004. During the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002 and through April 7, 2005, the Plan did not consult with M&P with respect to the Plan regarding any of the matters or events set forth in Item 304(a)(2)(i) or (ii) of Regulation S-K. The change in the registered public accounting firm described above was approved by the Sonoco Benefits Committee, which has delegated authority to do so.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

      The Report of the Compensation Committee of the Board on Executive Compensation and the Audit Committee Report and the Stock Price Performance Graph are not deemed filed with the SEC and shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any prior or future filings made by the Company under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, except to the extent that the Company specifically incorporates such information by reference.

      References to our Web site address throughout this Proxy Statement are for information purposes only and are not intended to incorporate our Web site by reference into this Proxy Statement.

SHAREHOLDER PROPOSALS FOR NEXT ANNUAL MEETING

      If you want to present a shareholder proposal to be voted on at our Annual Meeting in 2007, you must submit the proposal to the Secretary of the Company in writing by February 2, 2007. However, if you want us to include your shareholder proposal in our proxy materials for our Annual Meeting in 2007, you must be sure the Secretary of the Company receives your written proposal by November 20, 2006. All shareholder proposals must comply with the requirements of our bylaws. The proxy agents for the Company will use their discretionary authority to vote on any shareholder proposal that the Secretary of the Company does not receive by February 3, 2007.

SHAREHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

      Any shareholder who wishes to send communications to any member of the Board of Directors should mail them addressed to the intended recipient by name or position in care of: Corporate Secretary, Sonoco Products Company, 1 North Second Street, Hartsville, SC 29550 USA. Upon receipt of any such communications, the Corporate Secretary will determine the identity of the intended recipient and whether the communication is an appropriate shareholder communication. The Corporate Secretary will send all appropriate shareholder communications to the intended recipient. An “appropriate shareholder communication” is a communication from a person claiming to be a shareholder in the communication the subject of which relates solely to the sender’s interest as a shareholder and not to any other personal or business interest.

      In the case of communications addressed to the Board of Directors, the Corporate Secretary will send appropriate shareholder communications to the Chair of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee. In the case of communications addressed to the independent or non-management directors, the Corporate Secretary will send appropriate shareholder communications to the Chair of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee. In the case of communications addressed to committees of the Board, the Corporate Secretary will send appropriate shareholder communications to the Chair of such committee.

      The Corporate Secretary is required to maintain a record of all communications received that were addressed to one or more directors, including those determined not to be appropriate shareholder communications. Such record will include the name of the addressee, the disposition by the Corporate Secretary and, in the case of communications determined not to be appropriate, a brief description of the nature of the communication. The Corporate Secretary is required to provide a copy of any additions to the record to the Chair of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee quarterly.

DELIVERY OF DOCUMENTS TO SHAREHOLDERS SHARING AN ADDRESS

      We have begun delivering a single copy of the Annual Report to multiple shareholders sharing one address unless we received contrary instructions from one or more of the shareholders at such address. Upon oral or written request to The Bank of New York, Investor Services Department, P.O. Box 11258, New York, NY 10286-1258 USA, (800)524-4458, The Bank of New York will promptly deliver a

separate copy of the Annual Report to a shareholder at a shared address to which a single copy was delivered. If you are currently receiving a single copy of the Annual Report for multiple shareholders at your address and would prefer to receive separate copies in the future, please write or call The Bank of New York at the address or telephone number above and ask them to send you separate copies. If you are still currently receiving multiple copies of the Annual Report for multiple shareholders at your address and would prefer to receive a single copy in the future, please write or call The Bank of New York at the address or telephone number above, and ask them to send a single copy to your address.

ELECTRONIC ACCESS TO ANNUAL MEETING MATERIALS

      Sonoco’s Annual Report and Proxy Statement can be accessed via the Internet at www.sonoco.com/annualreportandproxystatement. As a shareholder of record, you can elect to receive future Annual Reports and Proxy Statements, as well as quarterly financial and other shareholder information, electronically. Instructions are provided on the voting site if you vote via the Internet. Instructions also are provided if you electronically access your shareholder account, and you are not already receiving your Annual Meeting materials electronically. If you select electronic receipt, you will be notified via email by The Bank of New York, our transfer agent, as to when the information will be available for your access. Your election to receive information electronically will remain in effect until you notify The Bank of New York in writing or by telephone that you wish to resume paper delivery by mail of these materials. If you own Sonoco shares through a broker or a bank, please contact that institution regarding instructions about receiving Annual Meeting materials and other financial information electronically.

OTHER MATTERS

      As of the date of this statement, management knows of no business that will be presented for consideration at the meeting other than that stated in the notice of the meeting. The proxy agents will vote in their best judgment on any other business that properly comes before the meeting.

      To assure your representation at the meeting, please vote by telephone (if you live in the United States or Canada), via the Internet or mark, sign, date and return your proxy card as promptly as possible. Please sign exactly as your name appears on the accompanying proxy.

March 20, 2006