Sustainable Business Podcast by Innovation Forum

Weekly podcast – Engaging on EU waste regulation? It’s all about the data

·19 min·1 clip

Leontien Hasselman-Kluge explains why packaging data is now a 'total game changer' under new EU regulation.

The episode opens with host Ian Welsh introducing the topic of changing EU waste regulation, referencing recent discussions at the Sustainable Packaging Innovation Forum in Amsterdam. He first presents a news roundup covering issues like US grid infrastructure hindering AI data center growth, China's dominance in energy transition equipment, and a cocoa price crash in West Africa linked to deforestation regulation delays. The main interview segment features Leontien Hasselman-Kluge, CEO of Impact Buying. She explains that the PPWR is a 'total game changer' because it mandates comprehensive packaging data, which was previously often incomplete or siloed. Companies must understand their specific role under the regulation (e.g., importer, producer) to determine data requirements. The conversation delves into how PPWR interacts with Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes, where packaging recyclability scores and recycled content directly influence the fees companies pay. Hasselman-Kluge emphasizes the need for internal collaboration, as packaging design decisions affect sustainability, compliance, and product margins. She notes the urgent deadline of August 12, 2026, for declarations of conformity, which will require verifying material composition and substance data for thousands of packaging systems. The interview concludes with her view that data, once shared through existing infrastructures like GS1, can become a financial enabler by reducing EPR fees. In the second segment, Innovation Forum's Leah Tachow discusses packaging sector trends, highlighting 'integration' as a key theme where design, compliance, cost, and infrastructure decisions must align. She mentions ongoing conflicts impacting fossil fuel infrastructure as a risk factor for plastics pricing. Tachow details the PPWR's complexity, referencing a recent EU guidance document with over 30 areas of clarification. She provides the example of Kraft Ions joining Polytag's Ecotrace program in the UK, which uses invisible UV tagging to capture data on whether plastic packaging is actually recycled. The episode ends with promotional details for upcoming Innovation Forum events in Chicago and New York.

As heard by us

A practical review of how EU packaging regulation turns data, design and EPR fees into linked business concerns.

EU packaging regulation lands as a management question when Leontien Hasselman-Kluge ties it to the data companies need for extended producer responsibility fees.

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Curious how EU packaging regulation turns design choices into data work, EPR fees and margin pressure?

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