Why packaging data has never been more important: Insights from Packaging Innovations 2026
Packaging Innovations remains a cornerstone event for the UK packaging sector. With more than 8,000 visitors this year, it continues to bring together the full breadth of the packaging value chain at a time of rapid regulatory change.
Last week, the Ecosurety team exhibited at the show and sponsored the Prince of Packaging bar for the first time, bringing peers together to build the connections needed to drive genuine progress towards a more circular packaging industry.
Our Business Development Specialist, Sonia Drake-Pighini, explores the key themes that repeatedly surfaced during the event, highlighting where the sector is feeling the greatest pressure, and where the opportunities for progress lie.
Data remains the industry’s biggest operational hurdle
EPR is built on the principle of data‑led accountability, yet the infrastructure needed to deliver consistent, auditable data across complex supply chains is still playing catch‑up. Many organisations are relying on fragmented systems and manual workarounds to collect essential information such as component level weights and recycled content declarations. This issue has come to the forefront in the last year with the introduction of the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) and modulated waste management fees.
With data quality directly impacting their EPR fees, brand owners are putting increased pressure on their suppliers to provide accurate packaging data. But many suppliers are still not equipped (or incentivised) to provide data at the level of granularity regulators now expect. This leaves brand owners carrying the risk, as legal responsibility ultimately sits with them, even when upstream data is incomplete or inconsistent.
Conversely, manufacturers and distributors shared their perspective on the strain of supplying data to multiple customers, each requesting information in different formats and at varying levels of detail. Conversations showed that there is a clear appetite for stronger alignment across the supply chain and a desire for standardisation, not just in data formats, but in how EPR is interpreted and applied across borders. While full harmonisation may take time, collaboration across the supply chain was repeatedly cited as the only viable way forward. Encouragingly, examples from Europe, particularly where countries have supported one another through Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) implementation, show that shared learning can meaningfully reduce friction and accelerate progress.
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