Welcome to Sustainable Packaging Explained, your guide to sustainable materials, methods, and package design produced by the Emerging Brands Alliance in conjunction with Packaging World. In today's episode, we will explore considerations of package design...

Digital packaging has seen good growth in recent years, led by the label segment. Allied Market Research (AMR) predicts that the global digital printing packaging market size will reach $49.9 billion by 2031, growing at...

Product packaging is one of the first things consumers notice; so it needs to be visually appealing. Your product appearance determines whether it sells … or sits on the shelf. An average product can benefit...

The basic idea behind extender producer responsibility (EPR) is to require packaging manufacturers to pay for the systems that manage their packaging waste. And EPR programs can be enhanced by giving companies financial incentives to...

Retailers continue to refine what packaging they find acceptable to answer consumer demand for more sustainable solutions — and consumer goods companies must keep innovating to keep pace. With the world’s landfills and waterways littered...

Smart Packaging. Sustainability. Packaging Design. Flexible Packaging. These are some of the top topics Packaging Digest is tracking, based on your interest. At the end of summer, interest in these topics was high! Our best-read...

​​​​​​​We see six ways artificial intelligence and machine learning can help you improve your supply chain. But four obstacles stand in the way. The science behind — and growth of — artificial intelligence (AI) and...

As manufacturing floors become more integrated and companies increase investments in technology, technology oversight has become an increasing area of interest to the membership of the Flexible Packaging Association (FPA). The 118th Congress has...

The Sterilization Packaging Manufacturers Council (SPMC®) is eagerly preparing for Sterile Packaging Day 2024, which will be celebrated at the Medical Design & Manufacturing West (MD&M West) conference on February 7. MD&M West is a...

Sterile packaging rarely penetrates the public’s consciousness, creating an awareness gap that the Sterilization Packaging Manufacturers Council (SPMC®) has been striving to close since 1994 and continues with ongoing guidance on issues affecting the industry....

The flexible packaging industry is entering an era of rapid transformation. Brands, particularly in the realm of consumer products, are eyeing a range of new materials to meet ambitious goals for creating more sustainable packaging....

As the world recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic and grapples with a host of new uncertainties, consumer attitudes towards sustainable packaging are undergoing significant shifts. To better understand these changes, global management consulting firm McKinsey...

Design, like many things, is cyclical. And that cyclical nature of trends in design, especially in branding and packaging, is about to reach warp speed. Big, bold, and bright are the three packaging Bs that...

When it comes to designing or optimizing a packaging line, “digital twin” is all the rage today. How is digital twin different from decades-old computer simulation? One of the best pieces of advice I got...

Workforce issues continue to impact the flexible packaging industry, as well as other manufacturing and nonmanufacturing sectors in the United States. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is attempting to alleviate the problem by proposing a...

Early in her career, Kuma Roberts hit a roadblock as she was climbing the ranks from receptionist to vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) at the Tulsa Regional Chamber. The next stepping stone...

Women running flexible packaging companies evangelize for the industry and its opportunities for people with talent and drive. And they agree that networking, the guidance of mentors, and the power of flexible packaging provide an...

While all flexible packaging protects the content it contains, sterilized flexible packaging must keep its contents free of contaminants that can potentially harm a medical patient who is often receiving lifesaving care. Over the years,...

Issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have been prevalent with businesses nationwide for years now, with company leaders pushing efforts to ensure racial and ethnic diversity in the workforce. Employers say they recognize a...

In modern times, people never seem to run out of new ideas. With each passing day, new inventions arise as well as new businesses. With so many soap brands, it makes it almost impossible for...

Can the smell and taste of packaging improve a product’s connection with consumers? How the science of sensory testing is enhancing the red-hot sustainable packaging market to make it more effective and more palatable to...

The demand to improve supply chain efficiency, reduce expenses, enhance product safety, and sustain product quality is driving the demand for single-use and, too often than not, hard-to-recycle packaging. However, this linear approach to packaging...

Now that 5G is transforming manufacturing connectivity, here are four ways it can benefit packaging production operations. At the Automate Show in Detroit, MI, at the end of May 2023, I attended Jan Diekmann’s keynote...

The food market is bustling with innovation and fresh food ideas — from reinventing favorite comfort classics to exploring alternative protein sources. With such diversity and choice, how do you distinguish your product and effectively...

What is packaging for? From its initial purpose of simply protecting the product to driving sales via consumer engagement, the role of packaging has substantially evolved. Smart/intelligent packaging continues this trend towards greater functionality, employing...

As with many other industries, packaging manufacturers are seeking to digitise their operations. Although not an entirely new concept, it is yet to be adopted across all operations in packaging manufacturing as organisations look to...

U.S. companies approached 2023 with some trepidation. They were still working through challenges with supply chains and recruitment when economic forecasters began eyeing the potential for a recession. The U.S. economy has proven more resilient...

The white plastic package is plain. No graphics. No slogans. No eye-catching colors. But the judges looked beyond the surface and saw properties worth noting. “This eliminates the use of aluminum foil,” says Charles Marshall,...