Three Key Themes Shaping the European Packaging Sector

At recent visits to European trade shows, including Packaging Innovations and Empack 2026 in Birmingham, UK, and Cfia in Rennes, we found an industry in active transformation: navigating the impact of regulatory changes, making material breakthroughs and demonstrating a deepening commitment to circularity. 

This article brings you our top three themes, based on what we saw and heard across the show floors and speaker stages.

1. Futureproofing Through Packaging Circularity Improvements

Hundreds of leading companies and exhibitors gathered at the shows this year, showcasing the sector’s latest innovations. Each had dedicated stages with guest speakers who examined the trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping the future of packaging, from bio-based materials to smart packaging as a tool for circularity. 

What was interesting wasn’t the presence of sustainability as a topic, but the depth at which it’s embedded into the industry’s thinking. The 2026 landscape is defined by brands that treat sustainability as a core design priority. Circularity ran as a thread through almost every conversation, connecting material choices, regulatory obligations, and consumer expectations into a single strategic challenge.

2. The Regulatory Push

EPR as a Design Driver

Eco-modulation adjusts the fees producers pay based on the recyclability of their packaging, rewarding materials that perform well in existing recovery streams. From 2030 in the EU, packaging that can’t demonstrate minimum recyclability performance will face restrictions, encouraging brands towards more recyclable and lighter packs. 

Speaker sessions on EPR were among the most attended at Packaging Innovations, and the conversations continued long after the talks ended, across booths and in the aisles. Much of that discussion focused on practical design responses: right-sizing and lightweighting packs to reduce tonnage-based fees and understanding fee differentials across material categories. 

For example, while plastic isn’t banned outright in the UK, the economics are shifting decisively. Red-rated, non-recyclable plastics face a 20% fee increase in 2026, rising to 100% by 2028, vs. amber base fee. This is encouraging a shift toward green-rated materials, and many standard paperboard solutions are well-positioned to benefit, given their compatibility with widely available recovery infrastructure.

The 5% Threshold That Changes the Maths 

Under the UK’s updated pEPR definitions, and in line with On-Pack Recycling Label (OPRL) guidelines, paperboard packaging with a plastic content of 5% or less by weight is classified as Paper or Board in the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM). By optimising barrier coatings to sit beneath that threshold, paperboard manufacturers are enabling brands to achieve two outcomes at once. Moving a pack from the Composite category to Paper or Board can reduce per metric ton fees by more than 50%.  

In Italy, CONAI has developed six levels of eco-modulation for paper-based packaging, ranging from level 1 for “monomaterial” packaging with <5% non-paper content to level 6 for more complex, e.g., multi-material packaging where paper is still the prevalent material by weight but paper content is <60%, as well as a grade dedicated to beverage cartons. The modulation is mainly based on non-paper content (bands <5; 5-10; 10-20, 20-40, and 40-50%) but also takes into account Aticelca recyclability certification, which potentially leads to a reduction in fees. On the one hand, the factor between the base fee and those applicable to packaging with difficult recovery is by a factor of up to around six. On the other hand, composites with less than 10% non-paper content pay the same fee as monomaterial ones, and the extra fee for those having 10-20% non-paper content is in the range of 20%. Granularity is greater in Italy than in other countries, such as Belgium or Spain, where it is also in place. Such systems create incentives for improving designs and avoiding non-recyclable packs and will be updated based on the recyclability performance grades under PPWR.

3. Paperisation and Plastic-Free Barriers 

Paperisation isn’t simply a matter of swapping one material for another. It requires advanced material engineering. For paperboard to succeed in categories previously dominated by high-performance plastics, it must match the functional requirements of those applications: shelf life, grease and moisture resistance, structural integrity, containment, protection, grouping and transport performance.

Conclusion: Packaging at the Center of a Circular Economy

One thing is clear: the packaging industry is not waiting for regulation to catch up with ambition. From EPR-driven material innovation to the rapid advancement of bio-based barriers, the sector is actively reshaping itself around a circular future. 

For brands and buyers, the opportunity is significant. Packaging choices made today will determine fee liabilities in 2028, recyclability performance in 2030, and the ability to meet sustainability commitments throughout the decade. Treating packaging as a strategic asset rather than a commodity cost is no longer aspirational. It’s a commercial and regulatory necessity. 

The conversations at the trade shows reflected an industry that understands this. The challenge now is translating that understanding into scaled, proven, high-performance solutions that can meet demand without compromising recovery. And that’s precisely where we believe the most important work of the next few years will be done. 

To discuss these topics with a member of our team, or to discuss any packaging challenge, please do get in touch.