item 7 .
management 2019s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations executive summary international paper 2019s operating results in 2007 bene- fited from significantly higher paper and packaging price realizations .
sales volumes were slightly high- er , with growth in overseas markets partially offset by lower volumes in north america as we continued to balance our production with our customers 2019 demand .
operationally , our pulp and paper and containerboard mills ran very well in 2007 .
however , input costs for wood , energy and transportation costs were all well above 2006 levels .
in our forest products business , earnings decreased 31% ( 31 % ) reflect- ing a sharp decline in harvest income and a smaller drop in forestland and real estate sales , both reflect- ing our forestland divestitures in 2006 .
interest expense decreased over 40% ( 40 % ) , principally due to lower debt balances and interest rates from debt repayments and refinancings .
looking forward to the first quarter of 2008 , we expect demand for north american printing papers and packaging to remain steady .
however , if the economic downturn in 2008 is greater than expected , this could have a negative impact on sales volumes and earnings .
some slight increases in paper and packaging price realizations are expected as we implement our announced price increases .
however , first quarter earnings will reflect increased planned maintenance expenses and continued escalation of wood , energy and transportation costs .
as a result , excluding the impact of projected reduced earnings from land sales and the addition of equity earnings contributions from our recent investment in ilim holding s.a .
in russia , we expect 2008 first-quarter earnings to be lower than in the 2007 fourth quarter .
results of operations industry segment operating profits are used by inter- national paper 2019s management to measure the earn- ings performance of its businesses .
management believes that this measure allows a better under- standing of trends in costs , operating efficiencies , prices and volumes .
industry segment operating profits are defined as earnings before taxes and minority interest , interest expense , corporate items and corporate special items .
industry segment oper- ating profits are defined by the securities and exchange commission as a non-gaap financial measure , and are not gaap alternatives to net earn- ings or any other operating measure prescribed by accounting principles generally accepted in the united states .
international paper operates in six segments : print- ing papers , industrial packaging , consumer pack- aging , distribution , forest products , and specialty businesses and other .
the following table shows the components of net earnings for each of the last three years : in millions 2007 2006 2005 .

in millions
2007
2006
2005
industry segment operating profits
$ 2423
$ 2074
$ 1622
corporate items net
-732 ( 732 )
-746 ( 746 )
-607 ( 607 )
corporate special items*
241
2373
-134 ( 134 )
interest expense net
-297 ( 297 )
-521 ( 521 )
-595 ( 595 )
minority interest
-5 ( 5 )
-9 ( 9 )
-9 ( 9 )
income tax benefit ( provision )
-415 ( 415 )
-1889 ( 1889 )
407
discontinued operations
-47 ( 47 )
-232 ( 232 )
416
net earnings
$ 1168
$ 1050
$ 1100

* corporate special items include restructuring and other charg- es , net ( gains ) losses on sales and impairments of businesses , gains on transformation plan forestland sales , goodwill impairment charges , insurance recoveries and reversals of reserves no longer required .
industry segment operating profits of $ 2.4 billion were $ 349 million higher in 2007 than in 2006 due principally to the benefits from higher average price realizations ( $ 461 million ) , the net impact of cost reduction initiatives , improved operating perform- ance and a more favorable mix of products sold ( $ 304 million ) , higher sales volumes ( $ 17 million ) , lower special item costs ( $ 115 million ) and other items ( $ 4 million ) .
these benefits more than offset the impacts of higher energy , raw material and freight costs ( $ 205 million ) , higher costs for planned mill maintenance outages ( $ 48 million ) , lower earn- ings from land sales ( $ 101 million ) , costs at the pensacola mill associated with the conversion of a machine to the production of linerboard ( $ 52 million ) and reduced earnings due to net acquisitions and divestitures ( $ 146 million ) .
segment operating profit ( in millions ) $ 2074 ( $ 205 ) ( $ 48 ) $ 17 ( $ 244 ) $ 2423$ 4 ( $ 52 ) ( $ 101 ) $ 461 $ 1000 $ 1500 $ 2000 $ 2500 $ 3000 .

Question: what was the percentage change in industry segment operating profits from 2006 to 2007?
Answer: 17%