On 29 November, the Palladio Group’s Innovation Hub organised the ‘Pack to the Future’ event at the Tecnopolo in Reggio Emilia, a meeting that brought together the main players in the sector to analyse innovations, trends and visions in a rapidly changing world. The main themes of the day were co-innovation and sustainability, fundamental aspects to face the challenges of a sector in continuous transformation.
Bormioli Pharma’s vision
The meeting started with Federico Piutti, Innovation Manager of Bormioli Pharma, who passionately presented the Bormioli Pharma Invents project, a co-innovation platform aimed at revolutionising pharmaceutical packaging. With a focus on sustainability and efficiency, Piutti outlined the new frontiers of packaging in the healthcare sector, highlighting the importance of solutions that meet not only consumer needs, but also the ecological imperatives of our time.
Tetra Pak and the commitment to sustainable transformation
The second talk, by Francesca Priora, Vice President Climate & Nature, and Davide Braghiroli, Director PPWR, of Tetra Pak, shifted the focus to the food sector, presenting ‘Driving the transformation of sustainability in the food value chain’. The solutions adopted by Tetra Pak are a perfect example of how a packaging giant can pioneer a true ecological revolution. Their initiatives to reduce environmental impact and promote a circular economy are a sign of a radical change in the way we produce and consume.
IMA between innovation and responsibility
The theme of sustainability found new inspiration in the speech by Marie-Charlotte Montaut, Sustainability Officer, and Davide Soncin, Product Manager, of IMA, who illustrated the company’s path towards a balance between innovation and responsibility. Their speech showed how innovation, combined with responsible choices, can really change the face of packaging, with a focus on resource management and collective wellbeing.
The start-ups of the future
At the end of the morning there was one of the most dynamic moments of the event, represented by the presentation of 4 start-ups, which brought fresh and innovative solutions:
– Voidless focused on optimisation in packaging management;
– Alkivio showed its commitment to the development of biodegradable and compostable biocomposites;
– Qwarzo presented solutions for a more effective circular economy;
– SMUSH Materials, proposed compostable and high-performance secondary packaging, bringing a clear message: sustainable packaging is not only possible, but also performs.
Among these four innovative start-ups, Voidless and SMUSH Materials were awarded for the positive impact of their solutions.
A workshop on sustainability macro-trends
In the afternoon, Greta Volpi, Project & Communication Manager, and Chiara Bricca, Business Development Manager, from Lifegate offered an inspiring insight with a collaborative workshop that explored sustainability macro-trends. From the circularity of the economy to decarbonisation, via digitisation and blockchain integration, the workshop demonstrated how social trends such as diversity and inclusion are increasingly becoming key pillars in sustainable packaging choices.
Packaging Design and Circular Innovation
This was followed by a talk by Laura Badalucco, Professor of Design at the IUAV in Venice, who got everyone thinking about the fundamental role of design in bringing circular packaging solutions to life. ‘Packaging design & upstream innovation’ was the title of a presentation that highlighted the importance of thinking about the future from the moment the product is designed. In a world where resources are increasingly scarce, design becomes a powerful weapon to build truly sustainable solutions.
Unboxing the Future
The day ended with a talk by Gabriele Molari, CTO&CMO, and Emily Ghisolfi Turilli, Innovation Manager of Palladio Group, who explored the importance of collaborative innovation as a driver for creating increasingly sustainable solutions. An invitation to work together to anticipate the future of packaging, a future that, thanks to collaboration between companies, institutions and consumers, is destined to be increasingly respectful of the environment and people.
“Pack to the Future” was not just an event, but an opportunity to imagine and design the future of sustainable packaging. A future where co-innovation, social responsibility and the adoption of advanced solutions are at the heart of every decision. The entire packaging ecosystem is ready to face the most important challenge: to evolve in an ecological, circular and innovative way.
A future that, thanks to the interventions and solutions presented, no longer seems like a mirage, but a reality within everyone’s reach.
