With 260 winners out of 550 applications from 40 countries, the WorldStar Packaging Award demonstrates the progress made by the packaging industry. At the same time, trends are visible that especially play a role in the mega-trend of sustainability.
- 04/09/2025
- Article
- New Creations
- Machinery Change
- Innovative Processes
Three Trends are Reflected in the WorldStar Winners
The WorldStar Packaging Awards, which are presented by the World Packaging Organisation (WPO), are considered to be the most prestigious international packaging award. We showcase some innovative winners from German-speaking countries. They prove that three trends stand out in particular.
Trend: Monomaterial
Plastic packaging has become an integral part of everyday life. Single-use packaging can be easily separated and utilized in recycling cycles if it is disposed of correctly. Multilayer films, on the other hand, which are made up of several polymer layers that are practically inseparable from each other, are not. Due to their outstanding barrier properties, such composite films are mainly used for food packaging, for example for sliced cheese or sausages. This packaging is usually thermally recycled. Therefore more and more manufacturers of packaging and products are focussing on monomaterials.
Real Cycles
Packaging producer Constantia Flexibles has been honoured with two WorldStar Global Packaging Awards 2025 for its sustainable packaging solutions EcoPeelCover and EcoLamHighPlus. The Austrian company received the awards in the packaging materials and components category.
The EcoPeelCover solution, which has already won the German Packaging Award 2024, impresses with its ultra-thin aluminium layer and high puncture resistance. EcoPeelCover offers a high level of barrier protection that protects dairy products from moisture and oxygen and preserves their freshness.
EcoLamHighPlus is a mono-polyethylene (PE) laminate specially developed for recyclability. It combines oxygen and moisture barrier properties with lap-seal technology. Thanks to its light weight and recyclability certification, EcoLamHighPlus is the ideal choice for packaging dry food, powder products, coffee and snacks.
PCR Use in Stretch Bonnets
Duo Plast AG, alongside its cooperation partners Der Grüne Punkt and Nestlé Germany, has been honoured in the packaging materials and components category for its innovative stretch hood packaging. The three companies innovation was already honoured with the German Packaging Award in 2024.
According to the award winners, the packaging, which has now also won an international award, marks a milestone as it contains post-consumer recyclates (PCR) from household packaging waste for the first time. The newly developed stretch bonnets contain up to 20 per cent Systalen LDPE recyclate from the yellow bin in their middle layer.
This is the first time that PCR from household collection has been used in such a sophisticated product. Until now, the industry has not used PCR from yellow bags or bins for this purpose. The use of at least 20 per cent post-consumer recyclate in the middle layer of the stretch bonnet is therefore innovative.
The new stretch bonnet packaging is an important step towards achieving the recyclate quotas required by the PPWR. The stretch hood packaging is suitable for securing pallets in various industries, including food, chemicals and construction. "The integration of PCR from household waste into stretch bonnets was previously almost unthinkable. Our solution proves how technical innovation and sustainability can go hand in hand," says Thorsten Weber, Head of Application and Production Technology at Der Grüne Punkt.
"Paperization"
Paperization, meaning the replacement of plastic with paper, is a trend in the consumer goods industry that is particularly well represented in the marketing sector. For many products, this substitution is relatively straightforward in technical terms, but for others it is much more difficult, as plastic has a number of properties that paper does not.
The company Chocal Packaging Solutions GmbH has developed a razor blade blister made of paper and received the WorldStar award in the Health and Care category. The paper blister replaces the conventional packaging combination of a cellulose or plastic insert with a folding box and possibly a protective film. The FSC and PEFC-certified paper can be fully recycled and composted. Even packaging that is disposed of in residual waste or in nature decomposes completely and residue-free within a few weeks, without microplastics as a residue.
The new development also saves an enormous amount of material: the packaging lies directly on the product like a kind of second skin and guarantees full product protection without an additional protective film. "We make this possible through the specific design and moulding according to individual customer requirements and product dimensions. In addition, our razor blade blister combines primary, secondary and tertiary packaging in just one solution, which leads to further significant material savings."
The Path to the Award
The WorldStar Award is presented annually by the World Packaging Organisation (WPO). Founded in 1970, the organization has set itself the goal of promoting global innovations in the packaging industry. Only packaging that has already received national or regional awards can qualify for the WorldStar Award. Winners of the dvis prestigious German Packaging Award pave the way for the international honour.
Companies, institutions and individuals can submit their solutions for the German Packaging Award 2025 until 31 May 2025. The award will be presented at a ceremony on the first day of FACHPACK, which takes place from 23 to 25 September and is the largest European industry gathering this year.
by Anna Ntemiris, Editor