U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                      WASHINGTON, D.C.  20549
  
                            FORM 8-K

                         CURRENT REPORT 

                PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF
                THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934


Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported)          December 10, 1997 


                    GREIF BROS. CORPORATION
     (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


         Delaware                      1-566               31-4388903
(State or other jurisdiction        (Commission          (I.R.S. Employer  
of incorporation)                   File Number)        Identification No.)


  425 Winter Road, Delaware, Ohio             43015
(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)


Registrant's telephone number, including area code 	  740-549-6000


                               Not Applicable
       (Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

                            Page 1 of 6 Pages
                      Index to Exhibits at Page 4


Item 5.   Other Events

	On December 10, 1997, Greif Bros. Corporation (the "Company") 
signed a non-binding letter of intent (the "Letter of Intent") to acquire 
all of the outstanding shares of KMI Continental Fibre Drum, Inc. ("KMI"), 
a Delaware corporation, Fibro Tambor, S.A. de C.V. ("Fibro Tambor"), a 
Mexican corporation and Sonoco Plastic Drum, Inc. ("SPD"), an Illinois 
corporation, all of which are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Sonoco Products 
Co. ("Sonoco").  In addition, the Company would purchase Sonoco's interest 
in Total Packaging Systems of Georgia, LLC ("TPS"), a Delaware limited 
liability company.  The business operations of KMI, SPD, Fibro Tambor, TPS 
and their respective subsidiaries comprise the entire industrial container 
business operation of Sonoco and its affiliates (the "Industrial Container 
Business").

	The Letter of Intent provides that the purchase price for the 
Industrial Container Business will be $225,000,000 in cash.  The 
acquisition will include twelve fibre drum plants and five plastic drum 
plants along with facilities for research and development, packaging 
services and distribution.

	The Company and Sonoco expect to proceed toward negotiation and 
execution of a definitive purchase agreement with respect to the purchase 
and sale of the Industrial Container Business, which purchase agreement 
will include such representations, warranties, covenants, conditions (which 
conditions will include, among others, satisfactory completion of due 
diligence by the Company and receipt of all required governmental approvals 
or expiration of applicable waiting periods, as the case may be) and 
indemnification provisions as are typical in transactions of this nature.  

	The execution of the Letter of Intent is described in the press 
release issued by the Company on December 11, 1997, which is included 
herewith as Exhibit 99.

Item 7.    Financial Statements and Exhibits

(a)  - (b)  Not applicable

(c)   Exhibits:

  Exhibit Number                   Description

      99                           Press Release issued
                                   December 11, 1997


SIGNATURES

	Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act 
of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its 
behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.


DATE:	December 15, 1997	                    Greif Bros. Corporation



                                       		BY /s/  Michael J. Gasser
                                       		   Michael J. Gasser, Chairman
                                       		   and Chief Executive Officer


INDEX TO EXHIBITS



Exhibit Number              Description                 Pages

     99                     Press Release issued        5 and 6
                            December 11, 1997