Ahead of this year's Sustainability in Packaging Asia 2025, we spoke with Ciaran Little, VP, Global Consulting, Information Division at Smithers, to get a sneak peek of what we can expect from his presentation on 'Packaging market outlook and trend' Here's what he had to say…




Q1. Your upcoming presentation at Sustainability in Packaging Asia will explore Packaging market outlook and trend. Why is this message particularly critical for industry professionals to hear right now?

Smithers has a unique vantage point to assess the outlook for the packaging industry as we interact with players across the globe and across the value chain in a wide range of technical and commercial roles. This enables us to understand the complex dynamics across the industry and provide insight on the future outlook. In times of significant disruption and uncertainty we hope to provide an authoritative and objective perspective on the future to enable individuals and companies to plan for coming trends, make smart investments and set a path to deliver the packaging the consumer and the planet will require in the future


Q2. What do you see as the most significant hurdles companies encounter when shifting to sustainable packaging, and how can they overcome them?

There are three main hurdles to address:

1. The regulatory landscape gives brands and their supporting value chain a complex, fast changing and inconsistent set of targets to aim at as different regions have different priorities, waste infrastructure and policy objectives. This can be addressed by gaining in depth understanding of the current and future regulatory landscape globally
2. Balancing technical performance, commercial imperatives and sustainability. Often initiatives that improve performance can reduce recyclability or vice versa, achieving both can add cost at a time when prices are already under significant pressure for both consumers and the industry. This can be addressed by collaboration throughout the value chain to find innovations that deliver across all three dimensions
3. Transforming from traditional value chains to circularity. Redesigning for circularity isn’t just about packaging design, its also about designing business models, supply chains and systems that enable circularity whether that is through recycling or reuse. This is a significant transformation to rapidly change systems that have evolved over decades and can only be addressed through deep strategic collaboration from raw materials to waste management

Q3. Are there any breakthrough technologies or innovations on the horizon that could transform sustainable packaging as we know it?

There are a very wide range of breakthroughs coming to the market every week from across all material sectors. Most of them are incremental improvements to make packaging more sustainable one step at a time rather than truly transformational in their own right

However, when you look at the collective progress the industry has made in enhancing recyclability for materials like flexible packaging that have traditionally been challenging to recycle or improving barrier for materials that traditionally haven’t been able to perform in high barrier applications like fibre based packaging you realise we have come along way in a short period of time

So I think the outlook for the future will be similar, steady progress across lots of different areas which collectively will result in significant steps forward.


Q4. Some argue that sustainable packaging comes at a higher cost than conventional alternatives. How would you respond to this concern, especially from a business viability perspective?

The question we get asked most by packaging suppliers is ‘will brands pay more for sustainability’ and the answer is it depends, normally on three things:

1. The system – brands will be willing to accept an increase in per unit material costs if a brand can take overall system costs out as a result, this might be in secondary packaging, transit costs, proceesing or even an improvement in shelf life, in speed to market or in reducing waste. Sustainability innovations that also have a business case overall are much more likely to gain traction
2. The consumer – some brands and categories have more of a focus on sustainability because that is what their consumer is looking for and is part of their value proposition, in these cases a more sustainable pack can create a competitive advantage and drive sales even at a higher price point.
3. The regulatory implications, increasingly EPR and eco modulation are changing the economics for brands packaging spends and switching to materials that are per unit more expensive but can reduce EPR fees will become more viable

Ultimately, sustainability doesn’t necessarily have to come at a high cost and its not a straight choice between affordability and sustainability. Sustainable packaging needs to work commercially for the whole value chain to enable widespread adoption


Q5. How can packaging be intentionally designed from the outset to align with circular economy principles?

The most important consideration is dialogue with the local waste management industry to understand if the new product design is recyclable in practice in its target market. We’ve been involved in several projects recently where conversations with local recyclers have given great insight that has changed approaches for new pack designs in surprising ways. The recycling sector is continuing to evolve and respond to the packaging trends in the market so its important to stay up to date with the latest innovations in that sector as well as in the pack material and format considerations.


Q6. Looking ahead, what key trends or advancements do you anticipate shaping the future of sustainable packaging in the next 5-10 years?

The industry will continue to respond to consumer, regulatory and NGO demand for more sustainable solutions and hopefully my presentation will provide some good insight into the trends and advancements you can see in the next few years