Summit urges change from Europe’s packaging industry

Sustainable packaging issues took center stage at the third Packaging Summit Europe, held recently in Amsterdam. Design innovations and supply chain strategies were also key themes at the two-day conference and exhibition, which attracted nearly 300 senior packaging professionals from across Europe – including a diverse range of end-users and suppliers of packaging products.

Highlights of the conference program included Steph Carter, packaging sustainability director at Unilever, who explained how the company integrates environmental concerns into the packaging development process. He argued that brand owners need to consider the whole product when setting sustainability targets, and not just packaging in isolation. He listed several metrics that need to be measured and highlighted a number of common misunderstandings of the waste management industry amongst packagers. Leading sustainability ‘myths’ include the fact that packaging itself is ‘evil’, where in fact, according to Carter, ‘food packaging typically has less than 10 percent of the environmental impact of its contents. It preserves and protects far more than its own impact.’

Rowland Heming, senior manager at Design Board – Pineapple, discussed the creation of ‘must have’ packaging. He examined consumer behavior in the supermarket environment. Robert Wilson of Pyry Consulting explored the relationship in the supply chain between design and procurement and suggested a set of innovations and purchasing strategies that will help packaging professionals.

Brian Sparks, packaging development manager at Oriflame Cosmetics, said about the event: ‘The conference offered a fine networking opportunity, stimulated by a well considered program filled with useful insights.’

An exhibition featuring 30 stands ran alongside the conference. Exhibitors included leading packaging materials and services companies such as DuPont, Smurfit Kappa, UPM, Eckart, Micro-Pact and Kinneir Dufort. Praveen Kapse of multinational packaging designers Tata Elxsi, exhibiting for the first time at Packaging Summit Europe, felt that the exhibition provided ‘good insights for the European market’.

The fourth Packaging Summit Europe is scheduled to take place in Amsterdam in June 2009.