We see negative packaging-related stories every day, but what is your favourite good news packaging story from the past year? We discussed this question in a recent conversation with Lara Botta, VP at BOTTA EcoPackaging, and also looked ahead to the key talking points at the 2026 Sustainable Packaging Summit.
What do you think will be the key talking points at the 2026 Sustainable Packaging Summit?
For me, the central question will be how we move from ambition to implementation. The scale of the challenge is clear. The EU generated 79.7 million tonnes of packaging waste in 2023, equivalent to 177.8 kg per person (Eurostat, 2025).
At the same time, packaging accounts for around 40% of plastic consumption in Europe (European Environment Agency [EEA], 2023). These numbers make it clear that incremental change will not be enough.
PPWR will naturally be a major part of the conversation, but I hope we go beyond compliance. We need to discuss how regulation can become a catalyst for better design, better infrastructure and genuinely circular business models.
I also expect strong debate around materials. Paper and fibre-based solutions, plastics, reuse and advanced recycling all have a role, but none should be treated as a universal answer. Increasingly, the conversation must also be about economics.
A sustainable packaging solution that cannot scale, perform or make business sense will struggle to create meaningful impact. The real opportunity is to connect environmental progress with commercial reality and turn innovation into something the market can actually adopt.
You’ll be moderating a panel on paperization at the Summit – how do you think this trend has developed across the past year?
Paperization has clearly moved beyond a simple substitution story. A year ago, much of the conversation was about replacing single-use plastic with paper; today, the more interesting question is how we engineer fibre-based packaging to deliver the functionality modern supply chains demand.
There is good reason for the interest. Paper-based packaging already has a strong recycling infrastructure in Europe, with recycling rates reported at around 87% (Cepi, 2024), while the EU recycled only 42.1% of plastic packaging waste in 2023 (Eurostat, 2025). But the lesson is not that paper is automatically better. It is that material choice needs to be considered alongside design, infrastructure and end-of-life realities.
Our own work at BOTTA EcoPackaging reflects this evolution. For example, our Eco-Transparent Paper Polybag is engineered as a translucent paper alternative to conventional plastic polybags, showing how paperization is moving into applications where functionality and appearance have traditionally favoured single-use plastic.
That is where I think paperization is heading, which is away from a marketing trend and towards a more technical, evidence-based transformation of packaging.
We see a lot of concerning/negative packaging stories every day, so much so that it can be hard to remember positive stories about innovation and sustainability successes. What has been your favourite packaging-related good news story from the past year?
My favourite “good news” story is the growing number of innovations making fibre-based packaging work in applications where it was previously considered too difficult.
The reason I find this encouraging is that we are no longer talking only about replacing one material with another. We are seeing innovation in barriers, closures, moulded fibre, cushioning and protective packaging; essentially, engineers are solving the difficult technical problems that determine whether an alternative can really work at scale.
The progress is also measurable. Paper and board packaging already has a mature recycling system in Europe, and recent European data shows that 75.1% of all paper products were recycled in 2024.
The sheer diversity of ideas coming through the industry is also encouraging. The Sustainability Awards illustrate this well. The innovation landscape is no longer dominated by one material or one technological pathway.
For me, that is the positive story that the industry is learning how to turn sustainability challenges into engineering challenges, and then into commercial opportunities.
When you think about the 2026 Sustainable Packaging Summit, what is the part you are most looking forward to?
I am most looking forward to the conversations that happen between the sessions, when people from very different parts of the value chain sit together and realise that they are solving different parts of the same problem.
Packaging is inherently collaborative. A converter cannot create a circular solution alone; neither can a brand, material producer, recycler, regulator or technology company. We need to understand the constraints on the other side of the value chain before we can design solutions that work in the real world.
I am particularly looking forward to moderating the discussion on paperization. The subject has genuine momentum, but it also deserves honest debate. Europe is already recycling paper-based packaging at a much higher rate than plastic packaging, but we still have to address barriers, coatings, fibre sourcing, food-contact requirements and the realities of collection and recycling.
Ultimately, I hope people leave Utrecht with fewer slogans and more practical ideas, and, ideally, with new partnerships that can turn those ideas into reality.
