“Those who weren’t able to attend definitely missed out.” This was the unanimous view of the exhibitors and also the visitors at FachPack, which recently took place in Nuremberg/Germany. The European trade fair for packaging, technology and processes was brimming with innovation and inspiration for the packaging sector, and the pleasure of being able to meet in person was palpable everywhere.

Around 24,000 trade visitors took the opportunity to find answers to their specific packaging questions at 788 exhibitors from 33 countries. Around 41 % of the exhibitors and one in three of the trade visitors had travelled to Nuremberg from outside Germany, mainly from Austria, Switzerland, Italy and the Netherlands. Access to the exhibition with e-tickets and verification of “3G” status (proof of having been vaccinated, tested, or recovered from Covid) at the entrances was swift and uncomplicated. The hygiene strategy worked, with exhibitors and visitors observing the relevant regulations.

The exhibitors had particular praise for the high quality of the industry professionals. This is backed up by the results of a visitor survey by an independent institute: some 90 % of the trade visitors said they were involved in the purchasing and procurement decisions in their companies. The trade show covered a comprehensive range of products from the entire packaging process chain for industrial and consumer goods, including packaging materials and accessories, bottling and packaging machinery, labelling, marking and identification technology, packaging printing and finishing systems as well as palletizing technology, logistics systems and services. The supporting programme proved highly popular: about 9,500 audience members followed the 101 expert presentations in the Packbox, Techbox and Innovationsbox forums. Anyone who missed a presentation at the trade fair can still view it on the myFACHPACK digital tool until the end of the year.

As part of this special industry event, all 52 winners of this year’s Packaging Award of the German Packaging Institute (dvi) were additionally introduced and honoured. 15 top packaging solutions that stand out from among the winners were honoured with the exclusive Gold Award for particularly ground-breaking innovations around packaging. The Gold Award winners at Europe’s biggest showcase for packaging achievements represent the very best solutions in nine different categories: Digitalization, Functionality & Convenience, Design & Processing, Logistics & Material Flow, Sustainability, New Material, Packaging Machinery, Presentation of Goods, and Economic Efficiency.

FachPack sees itself as a signpost and wants to offer orientation to the industry. The new guiding theme for 2022, “Transition in packaging”, is therefore dedicated to the strong currents that are currently impacting the packaging industry. Not only legislators, but also consumers are demanding sustainability – and this is changing the industry profoundly. Topics such as the circular economy, digitalization and e-commerce follow suit. Covid-19 has brought product protection into focus from a hygiene perspective and has also seen areas such as online shopping and home deliveries grow even more. What kind of shopping behaviour will consumers show in the future? All these topics are not only a task for the packaging industry, they also offer a great opportunity for change.

The next Fachpack will take place in the Exhibition Centre Nuremberg in its usual sequence from 27 to 29 September 2022.