SPI Packaging Innovation & Technology

The problem: why technology choices carry more risk now

Innovation teams have always had to judge whether a new material performs and scales. Since 2025, they also have to judge whether it will be legal, collectable and affordable under rules that are now dated. A material that works on the line can still fail on recyclability grade, PFAS content or fee band.

Recyclability becomes a market-access test

The PPWR, Regulation (EU) 2025/40, has applied since 12 August 2026 (PR-EU-001). From 1 January 2030, packaging is expected to be recyclable, assessed against design-for-recycling criteria in Commission delegated acts and expressed as performance grades A, B or C. From 2035 it is also to be measured against recycling at scale, and from 1 January 2038 the minimum is grade B, according to the SPI note on PR-EU-010, which cites PPWR recitals 28 and 31. Recital 33 allows innovative packaging additional time.

Design for recycling means designing a pack so that collection, sorting and recycling systems can recover its material: for example, a single polymer rather than a laminate, or a label and adhesive that separate in the wash.

Fee schedules already price recyclability

EPR schemes set fees by material and, increasingly, by whether a format is collected and recycled. In the SPI EPR & Plastic Tax Calculator, the spread between collected and not-accepted formats is large.

In Belgium, the Fost Plus 2026 tariff varies even within one polymer. A clear colourless PET bottle pays EUR 0.3604 per kg and an opaque PET bottle EUR 0.8776, while other plastics including aluminium laminates and PVC pay EUR 4.419 per kg.

Italy’s CONAI sets a separate 2026 band for biodegradable and compostable plastic at EUR 246 per tonne, inside a plastic range that runs from EUR 51 to EUR 922 per tonne by band (rows FEE-IT-012 to FEE-IT-021). Fee treatment is therefore part of the business case for any new material, and it differs by market.

Substances and formats are being restricted

The PFAS limit for EU food-contact packaging, in force since 12 August 2026, mainly touches paper, board and moulded-fibre grades that relied on fluorinated treatments for grease and water resistance, according to the SPI note on PR-EU-002. That creates demand for alternative barrier technologies, and a need for evidence that they sit below the limits. From 1 January 2030, Article 25 and Annex V of the PPWR also bar specified single-use plastic formats, such as packaging for pre-packed fresh fruit and vegetables under 1.5 kg (PR-EU-008; see PPWR 2030 format restrictions). The 2030 reuse targets of 40% for transport packaging and 10% for grouped packaging (PR-EU-006) and the 50% empty-space limit for grouped, transport and e-commerce packaging (PR-EU-009) open space for reusable and right-sizing systems.

In the United States, California SB 343 limits recyclability claims, including the chasing-arrows symbol, on products made after 4 October 2026. Its enforcement has been blocked by a preliminary injunction since 14 July 2026, and its status in the tracker is being updated in the 13 October check (PR-US-011).

Recycling technology is being written into tax and content rules

The PPWR sets minimum recycled content in plastic packaging from 2030, rising to up to 65% for single-use plastic beverage bottles by 2040 (PR-EU-004, PR-EU-005), and the EUR-Lex summary lists compostable plastic packaging among the exceptions. In the UK, HMRC has announced a certified mass balance approach for chemically recycled plastic from 1 April 2027 (PR-GB-001). Mass balance is an accounting method that allocates recycled input to outputs across a process where recycled and virgin feedstock are mixed.

Brand owners need solutions they do not yet have

The SPI Buyers Database shows the gap between recyclability targets and reported progress, especially for flexible packaging.

Who this service is for

• R&D and packaging development teams at brand owners and converters who need to know which alternative materials or barrier technologies are close to commercial use.
• Innovation and corporate venturing teams screening start-ups, licences or partnerships in a packaging technology area.
• Material start-ups and scale-ups who want an outside view of the competitive patent and launch landscape, and the rules their technology must meet in target markets.
• Strategy teams at material suppliers deciding where to commercialise a technology first.

Scope: what SPI covers

1. Technology landscaping: the technologies, materials and process routes that address a defined packaging problem, such as a PFAS-free grease barrier or a recyclable high-barrier flexible film, grouped by approach.
2. Patent monitoring: documented searches in public patent databases such as the European Patent Office’s Espacenet and WIPO PATENTSCOPE, with the queries, classification codes and date ranges recorded so they can be repeated.
3. Emerging material assessment: performance claims, published test results, launches, announced capacity and supply chain, each with its source.
4. Regulatory and fee fit: each technology mapped against the design rules, recycled-content rules and fee schedules in the SPI Trackers for your target markets.
5. Commercialisation opportunities: where and with whom a technology could be launched first, based on rule timing, buyer commitments and fee incentives.

Deliverables

Methodology: the SPI 6-step spine

All SPI consulting follows the six steps set out in the SPI Methodology. For technology work, they look like this.

Patent searches are recorded query by query, so you can re-run them or hand them to your patent counsel. Readiness is an SPI judgement and is always shown with the evidence behind it.

Sample deliverable outline (illustration only)

The tables and outline below illustrate the format of a typical readiness assessment. They are not from a past project and contain no real company names, technologies or results.

A typical readiness report runs in this order:

1. Problem and boundary. The packaging problem, the technologies in scope and the markets that matter.
2. Rules and fees that set the bar. Design rules, recycled-content rules and fee bands, with rule IDs and rate rows.
3. Landscape. Approaches grouped by mechanism, with active organisations from public evidence.
4. Patent activity. Filing trends and main applicants by technology group, with queries in the annex.
5. Readiness table. Each technology on the evidence ladder, with the evidence and the gaps.
6. Commercialisation options. Where each ready technology could go first, and what would need to be true.
7. Annex. Search strings, sources, assumptions and the corrections log.

Engagement formats and typical timelines

What SPI needs from you

• The packaging problem and the performance requirements a solution must meet.
• Technologies, companies or patent families to include or exclude, if you already have a view.
• Target markets, end uses and the time horizon for commercial launch.
• Any internal test data or patent searches you want SPI to take into account, shared under confidentiality.
• A named contact and your decision date.

Limitations: what this service does not do

• Not freedom-to-operate and not a legal opinion. Patent analysis is landscape-level. SPI does not assess infringement, validity or patentability. For those, you need qualified patent counsel, and we can point you to a qualified provider.
• No testing or certification. SPI does not test materials, certify recyclability or compostability, or carry out life-cycle assessments. Where you need a laboratory test or certified assessment, we say so.
• Readiness is an SPI judgement. It is based on public evidence and stated as such, with the evidence shown.
• Rule fit is not legal advice. Grades under PR-EU-010 depend on delegated acts not yet adopted; confirm obligations with counsel.
• Public and licensed sources only. SPI does not seek confidential or improperly obtained information about any company’s technology.
• The SPI Innovation & Launch Tracker and the SPI Patent Tracker are not yet available. Patent and launch evidence is built for each assignment from public databases.

SPI Trackers and tools this service draws on

• SPI Regulation Tracker: 79 rules in 25 jurisdictions, including 6 design rules and 6 recycled-content rules.
• SPI EPR & Plastic Tax Calculator: 216 published rate rows in 14 markets, used to compare the fee band of a new material with the incumbent.
• SPI Buyers Database: 179 public packaging targets from 42 brand owners and retailers, used to show where buyers need new solutions.

Where this fits in your decision

In SPI’s Discover, Understand, Evaluate, Decide and Implement model, Innovation & Technology sits at Understand (what is maturing and what the rules require) and Evaluate (which option is ready). Once a material is chosen, SPI Sustainable Packaging Strategy covers redesign and roll-out priorities. Investors assessing a technology company can combine this with SPI Packaging Investment & Transaction Intelligence. Free context on materials is at SPI Intelligence for Packaging Manufacturers.

How to enquire

Send an enquiry through the contact form with the packaging problem, the technologies of interest and your decision date, or write to sales@strategicpackaginginsights.com. The SPI team aims to reply within two business days. If the work fits, we hold a scoping call and send a written proposal with a fixed fee.