Sustainability, innovation, automation and Industry 4.0 are just a few of the words a packaging professional is likely to hear bandied about each day. Another word you are likely hear is collaboration, which seems to be experiencing growing importance these days.

In the last year, as many as 350 brand owners and retailers globally have announced plans to make all of their packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable by the year 2025. At the same time, some of these companies are going a step further by saying they plan to reduce the use of virgin plastics in their packaging — often by as much as 50 percent. 

Across many areas, suppliers are making innovative advances that continue to propel pouches as the fastest-growing packaging segment. Many of these developments are in response to consumers’ demands for more convenience in packaging, at the same time balancing their concerns for protecting the environment.

Building on its theme covering the evolution of pouches, the 2019 Global Pouch Forum announces an agenda featuring presentations focused on innovation, sustainability and developing markets, such as the burgeoning cannabis industry. 

A rising tide of consumer sentiment against use of plastics is starting to flood the world. Everywhere, you can see images of debris in the oceans choking marine animals. Dire warnings are being floated about these environmental concerns. It is estimated that 80 percent of the estimated 8 million tons of plastics that flow into the oceans each year originates on land, much of it in six Asian nations. 

As brand owners in the food space look forward to 2019, several trends could – and should – affect their upcoming packaging decisions. 

This year’s Global Pouch West heads to Arizona with a dynamic program targeted to flexible packaging professionals doing business in the western U.S.