Deep Dive

Industry insights from our journalists


  • A person wearing an augmented reality headset uses calipers in an industrial facility.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Katie Pyzyk/Packaging Dive
    Image attribution tooltip

    Reality check: AR, VR transforms training for packaging manufacturers

    Augmented and virtual reality experiences at Greif, Papacks, Smurfit Westrock and Sonoco are working to boost employees’ skills and safety, pushing packaging manufacturing training into its “next era.”

    Katie Pyzyk • Oct. 16, 2024
  • A person using two hands to unscrew Rare Beauty's Soft Pinch liquid blush
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Rare Beauty
    Image attribution tooltip

    ‘Everybody benefits’: Why the beauty industry needs to get serious about accessible packaging

    Rare Beauty and Target have taken steps to develop guidance around universally accessible design, but the industry isn’t prioritizing it yet.

    Caroline Jansen • Oct. 15, 2024
  • A production line fills compostable coffee pods with coffee grounds
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of NatureWorks
    Image attribution tooltip

    Inside the debate over PLA, the packaging industry’s favorite bioplastic

    Polylactic acid has been around for decades, but it only became popular as an option for compostable packaging more recently. While some environmental groups question its credentials, the packaging sector expects demand to grow.

    Mary Catherine O'Connor • Oct. 8, 2024
  • Close-up shot of a food container with film that says recyclable.
    Image attribution tooltip
    K Neville via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Hush-hush: Is greenwashing pushback prompting pivot to ‘greenhushing’?

    Companies must focus on data to back their sustainability claims instead of resorting to silence, or exaggerations, said sources from groups such as the U.S. Plastics Pact, Glass Packaging Institute and McCormick & Co.

    Katie Pyzyk • Oct. 3, 2024
  • Close-up view of a row of $100 bills
    Image attribution tooltip
    Mark Wilson via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    How much did packaging CEOs make in 2023?

    The packaging industry’s largest manufacturers have a wave of new CEOs beginning this year. Here’s a look at how compensation has trended for packaging leaders — and their employees — in recent years.

    Maria Rachal, Cole Rosengren and Katie Pyzyk • Aug. 1, 2024
  • A Smurfit WestRock banner hangs in front of the New York Stock Exchange
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Smurfit WestRock
    Image attribution tooltip

    2024 packaging M&A trends: Megadeals are in, destocking hangover is out

    Despite several high-profile megadeals between large packaging companies in recent months, small companies make up more volume than meets the eye, according to analysts. And international transactions are gaining prominence. 

    Katie Pyzyk • July 10, 2024
  • Two people reading a document in an industrial workplace setting.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by JBM Packaging
    Image attribution tooltip

    Second chance hiring can bridge labor gaps, break employment barriers

    Although some companies say they initially hire formerly incarcerated individuals to overcome a labor shortage, these programs can lead to less employee churn, lower recidivism and life-changing impact, advocates say.

    Katie Pyzyk • April 30, 2024
  • A variety of shrink bands to seal jars and bottles that have compostable messaging printed on them.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Elevate Packaging
    Image attribution tooltip

    Compostable packaging take-back programs aim to ease consumer burden, boost recovery

    As compostable packaging rollouts outpace access to collection, more companies are looking to make collection less confusing via mail-in or pick-up programs.

    Katie Pyzyk • March 13, 2024
  • Clear plastic bottles
    Image attribution tooltip
    golubovy via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Does this packaging contain recycled plastic? Inside the mass balance debate

    An accounting system long used in other industries is gaining prominence in the packaging sector, due in part to the rise of chemical recycling. Companies, trade groups and regulators are weighing the complexities and controversies.

    Leslie Nemo • March 5, 2024
  • A bee sits on a thistle in the UK
    Image attribution tooltip
    Nigel Harris via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Biodiversity emerges as an ESG priority in packaging, but measurement could be a challenge

    As international standards evolve, fiber-based packaging companies are in the spotlight. Smurfit Kappa, WestRock, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative and Canopy Planet weigh in on what the increased focus means for the industry.

    April Reese • Feb. 20, 2024
  • A cooler full of various brands of milk in half-pint containers.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Lindsey Shuey/The Republican-Herald via AP

    Image attribution tooltip

    Carton shortage may last through school year, but brandless packaging brings relief

    Pactiv Evergreen said it’s producing half-pint cartons at maximum capacity as a supply chain disruption still challenges dairies and schools. Some people suggest the problem originates from an Ohio converting plant shuttering.

    Katie Pyzyk • Jan. 12, 2024
  • A person wearing black gloves holds a cardboard e-commerce box with QR codes and a barcode printed on the address label.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Sean Rayford via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Customization, AI and scannable codes seen as future opportunities for digital printing

    As the technology’s capabilities broaden, converters are “thinking in completely different ways” about packaging production and predicting it will capture some of analog printing's market share.

    Katie Pyzyk • Dec. 20, 2023
  • Industrial machinery with rolls of paper intertwined.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Georgia-Pacific
    Image attribution tooltip

    Brands level up packaging with digital printing’s customization, consumer connection options

    From Taylor Swift-printed Amazon boxes to different versions of the same product, digital inkjet printing enables converters such as Fortis Solutions Group, Printpack and Tetra Pak to meet brands' evolving needs.

    Katie Pyzyk and Shaun Lucas • Dec. 13, 2023
  • A loader manages compost at a Recology facility
    Image attribution tooltip
    Courtesy of Recology
    Image attribution tooltip

    Compostable packaging’s contested, complicated past doesn’t determine its future

    Composters can struggle to manage the wide variety of new packaging entering the market, leading to greater calls for labeling guidelines and testing. Cities like San Francisco and Minneapolis offer case studies in how to make it work.

    Mary Catherine O'Connor • Dec. 5, 2023
  • Labels on brown packaging
    Image attribution tooltip
    The image by Assemblies Unlimited is licensed under CC BY 2.0
    Image attribution tooltip

    Compostable packaging is still evolving but popular. Here’s where experts say it could be most effective.

    From farmers markets to Walmart to stadiums, compostable packaging is on the rise. Elevate Packaging, NatureWorks, the Sustainable Packaging Coalition and others weigh in on how to get it right.

    Hollie Stephens • Dec. 4, 2023
  • Rolls of paper being printed on industrial machinery.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Permission granted by Georgia-Pacific
    Image attribution tooltip

    ‘Revolutionary’ digital printing technology uptake expected to accelerate for packaging

    DS Smith, Georgia-Pacific, International Paper, WestRock, O-I Glass and others are among the companies innovating with this technology, which can increase precision and reduce waste. 

    Katie Pyzyk and Shaun Lucas • Nov. 29, 2023
  • A photo composite of tetra pack bottle being lassoed. The background is a screen shot from the 2012 Green Guides.
    Image attribution tooltip

    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images; Federal Trade Commission 

    Image attribution tooltip

    Taming the wild west of environmental marketing: A Green Guides history

    More than 30 years after state attorneys general pushed for scrutiny of marketing claims, the packaging landscape is as complicated as ever. Did the guides serve their original purpose?

    Mary Catherine O'Connor • Sept. 6, 2023
  • A person opens a box with a product wrapped in filler packaging in front of a video camera.
    Image attribution tooltip
    Milko via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Packaging evolves in response to ‘unboxing’ videos flooding social media

    Brands are requesting customized boxes to touch consumers’ emotions and build loyalty. Filler material, in-box printing and sustainability contribute to memorable unboxing moments, too.

    Katie Pyzyk • Aug. 16, 2023
  • Upside down plastic bottles
    Image attribution tooltip
    sebasnoo via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    Demand for recycled plastic in packaging is growing. So are concerns about potential health risks.

    Recent studies have raised questions about health effects from plastic, including recycled material, as companies and regulators increasingly look at ways to advance the use of recycled resin in food-grade packaging.

    April Reese • June 26, 2023
  • Person holding hamburger in a wrapper
    Image attribution tooltip
    hapabapa via Getty Images
    Image attribution tooltip

    As PFAS restrictions advance, paper industry struggles to phase out use

    The toxic “forever chemicals” have long been used in the packaging sector. While companies say they’re being phased out, finding alternatives and fully eliminating them from effluent remain ongoing issues.

    April Reese • April 3, 2023
  • Photo illustration of cardboard box
    Image attribution tooltip

    Photo illustration: Shaun Lucas/Industry Dive; Getty Images

    Image attribution tooltip

    5 factors influencing packaging design and operations

    From navigating inflation and changing regulations to assessing the impact of automation and plastics M&A, these are some of the top industry trends to watch.

    Katie Pyzyk, Maria Rachal and Cole Rosengren • March 27, 2023