5 packaging trends to watch in 2024

Shifting consumer habits and manufacturing footprints, evolving end-of-life design and looming sustainability targets are some of the factors poised to impact the packaging industry this year.

By Katie Pyzyk , Maria Rachal • Jan. 8, 2024

Packaging’s holiday connection

Packaging is in the spotlight around the holidays, as consumers seek more sustainable gift wrap alternatives and companies aim to lessen waste while maintaining surprise for e-commerce shipments.

By Packaging Dive Staff • Dec. 22, 2023

Balancing sustainability and surprise: Ships in own container hits holiday snags

Some consumers become Grinch-like when their surprises are prematurely revealed by a lack of secondary packaging. Although SIOC isn’t going anywhere, Amazon says workarounds can boost privacy.

By Katie Pyzyk • Dec. 21, 2023

BLS reports fatal worker injuries in plastics manufacturing, paper mills in 2022

The American Forest & Paper Association, PMMI and the Plastics Industry Association commented on ongoing efforts to improve safety.

By Maria Rachal • Updated Dec. 21, 2023

Destocking, a pandemic hangover, lingered in 2023

Inventory imbalances persisted, affecting results at many of the packaging industry’s biggest companies quarter after quarter.

By Maria Rachal • Dec. 20, 2023

Ball pushes EPR with deposit return systems in latest ‘50 States of Recycling’ report

Recycling rates appear to have stagnated or declined because of pandemic-related shutdowns at many recycling centers and due to “inclusion of new and more accurate data.”

By Maria Rachal • Dec. 19, 2023

On-demand rightsized packaging technology is changing the e-commerce game

Amazon and Walmart are among the e-commerce giants that announced rightsizing initiatives this year, largely stating sustainability reasons.

By Katie Pyzyk • Dec. 14, 2023

Aluminum groups make COP28 commitment to recycle nearly all beverage cans by 2050

Ardagh, Ball, Crown, Novelis and numerous associations endorsed a set of actions including government recycling targets and policies, better data collection and tracking and prioritizing can-to-can recycling.

By Maria Rachal • Dec. 11, 2023

Republic Services opens Las Vegas polymer center to supply recycled plastic for packaging

The center is expected to produce 100 million pounds of recycled plastics per year. It’s the first of several such locations designed to boost availability of recycled content as companies like Coca-Cola seek more for packaging.

By Megan Quinn • Dec. 5, 2023

Enhanced sustainable food packaging scorecard weighs chemicals of concern

The collaborative tool, which food service companies like Sodexo engage with, now considers how food temperature and other factors impact the likelihood of chemicals of concern to migrate.

By Maria Rachal • Dec. 1, 2023

Returnable packaging could cut material use as much as 75%: study

Amcor, Amazon, L'Oréal, PepsiCo and other brands were part of an advisory group for an Ellen MacArthur Foundation project that assessed reusable plastic packaging systems for beverage, personal care and food products.

By Maria Rachal • Nov. 28, 2023

US Plastics Pact advises on role of mass balance in PCR certification

As the role chemical recycling will play in packaging evolves, the group aims to address questions and spur demand for postconsumer recycled content.

By Maria Rachal • Nov. 27, 2023

Big things for small packages: Working to capture tiny recyclables

Small-format plastic packaging can’t be properly recycled via conventional residential systems. Representatives from Estée Lauder, Ulta and MIT discussed potential solutions at the Packaging Recycling Summit.

By Katie Pyzyk • Nov. 20, 2023

Schumer calls for USDA investigation into nationwide milk carton shortage

The New York senator is calling for help “to find packaging alternatives” and resolve the issue. Many point to Pactiv Evergreen as the source of the supply chain snarl, although no origin point has been positively confirmed.

By Katie Pyzyk • Nov. 16, 2023

US recycling rates have stagnated. Can collaborative packaging solutions turn them around?

Speakers from Tetra Pak, Coca-Cola, Kraft Heinz and General Mills discussed at the Packaging Recycling Summit how to work together to improve recycling — even though collaborating with competitors can pose challenges.

By Katie Pyzyk • Nov. 15, 2023

Brands, packaging companies and recyclers talk collaboration to improve recycling

Speakers from LRS, Myplas, P&G, PMMI, Rumpke and more connected at the Packaging Recycling Summit to hash out ways to improve recycling and product recyclability as “really, really rapid” packaging changes occur.

By Katie Pyzyk • Nov. 13, 2023

Amcor looks to source recycled PE from forthcoming Nova Chemicals facility

The Indiana rPE plant’s first line is on track for an early 2025 start. “We can't wait until Connersville is up and running for us to consider future investments” or M&A, said Nova Chemicals’ director of mechanical recycling.

By Maria Rachal • Nov. 13, 2023

Milk suppliers sour over carton shortage

Dairy suppliers and others cite Pactiv Evergreen as the supply problem’s source. Tetra Pak and other competitors are trying to step up production to meet increased demand as beverage producers seek help.

By Katie Pyzyk • Nov. 3, 2023

Amazon tweaks tech to create first 100% fiber-focused fulfillment center

Two main technologies are being tested at an Ohio facility to determine how best to transform other facilities to handle only fiber — not plastic — packaging.

By Katie Pyzyk • Updated Nov. 1, 2023

What’s in the box? Maybe a gift of recovering corrugated demand.

Containerboard demand remains down year over year, but was ending October’s spooky season in a less scary position than previous quarters, according to data from the American Forest & Paper Association.

By Katie Pyzyk • Oct. 31, 2023

Packaging manufacturers’ Q3 results

Follow what top companies are saying in quarterly earnings reports about demand, destocking and optimizing manufacturing as 2023 winds down.

By Packaging Dive Staff • Updated Nov. 17, 2023

HDPE packaging to get digital watermarking in HolyGrail 2.0 rollout in France

P&G, which is participating in the initiative to improve plastic recycling rates, hopes to gain insight into “any gaps in the actual chain of custody from manufacture to recycling so that we can ensure optimal circularity.”

By Maria Rachal • Oct. 23, 2023

Amazon outlines push to ‘eliminate packaging altogether’

As the company looks to remove added packaging from more orders in 2024, its packaging innovation director explains how Amazon identifies products fit to ship in their own packaging and works with vendors on redesigns.

By Maria Rachal • Oct. 19, 2023

Packaging Q3 earnings reports to follow early signs of holiday shopping zeal

Consumers have already shopped pre-holiday sales. Deloitte projected holiday season e-commerce sales growth upwards of 12.8%, while Adobe Analytics expects a boost from “record discounts and flexible payment methods.”

By Maria Rachal • Oct. 18, 2023

Packaging innovations: PlayStation boosts accessibility, Dymapak squeezes out tampering

Plus, packaging launches from Berry Global, Microtek Laboratories and UMF|PerfectCLEAN, including options that are compostable or contain PCR.

By Katie Pyzyk • Oct. 13, 2023