Hardly any other regulation impacts product design, material selection, supply chains, and business models as profoundly as the PPWR. For many companies, it is currently primarily a major challenge. Smurfit Westrock is already pursuing a clear approach: PPWR is not a deadline, but a strategic turning point. Those who are prepared today gain planning certainty – and a sustainable competitive advantage.
In conversations with branded goods manufacturers, industrial companies, and retailers, a recurring pattern is emerging, according to Boris Maschmann, CEO of Smurfit Westrock DACH. The PPWR is often perceived as a risk because key questions remain unanswered or because existing packaging solutions are difficult to adapt to the new requirements. Material restrictions, recyclability, recycled content quotas, minimum requirements, or reusable obligations do not affect individual packages, but entire portfolios and supply chains.
„The actual problem doesn't lie with the objectives of the regulation. We expressly share the ambition to make packaging more sustainable, recyclable, and resource-efficient. It becomes problematic where regulatory requirements meet a lack of clarity, unresolved methods, or non-scalable solutions. It is precisely here that many companies are currently coming under pressure.“
Boris Maschmann, CEO Smurfit Westrock DACH
Anyone who uses packaging today that is only compliant under certain assumptions risks making incorrect decisions with long-term consequences. It becomes particularly problematic where packaging either reaches its functional limits, doesn't work cleanly in recycling, or can only be individualised to a very limited extent. In such cases, there is no sustainable progress, but uncertainty – both ecologically and economically.
Regulation is not an end in itself
The PPWR will only be effective if it is practicable in its implementation. Packaging must not only be compliant in theory, but also function in reality: in product protection, logistics, handling, sorting, and recycling. It is precisely here that it becomes clear that regulatory compliance alone is not enough.
Packaging that meets individual requirements but simultaneously causes higher costs, unstable processes, or additional emissions doesn't solve a problem – it merely shifts it. Companies therefore need solutions that unite regulation, economic viability, and operational reality.
Preparation beats reaction
„For our customers, we therefore pursue a clear approach: PPWR is not just a deadline, but a strategic turning point. Those who are prepared today gain planning security – and a sustainable competitive advantage,“ says Maschmann. „At Smurfit Westrock, we don't view PPWR in isolation, but as part of a holistic packaging and supply chain architecture. Our solutions are designed not only to meet regulatory requirements, but also to simultaneously reduce costs, stabilise processes, and make supply chains more efficient. This is crucial, because regulation won't disappear – it will become more demanding.“
Paper packaging as a strategic response
Paper-based packaging solutions play a central role in this. They are recyclable, circular, and can be precisely adapted to different product and market requirements. At the same time, they offer a high degree of design freedom, industrial scalability, and robust performance in complex supply chains.
However, it's not just the material that is crucial, but the system perspective. Packaging must be designed to meet the requirements of the PPWR, function within existing recycling streams, reflect individual customer requirements, and enable measurable efficiency gains along the supply chain.
Boris Maschmann: „Companies that only see the PPWR as a regulatory obligation are missing out on potential. Implemented correctly, it becomes a lever: for optimised packaging, lower total cost of ownership, reduced emissions, and more resilient supply chains. Our experience from thousands of customer projects shows that those who optimise packaging based on data and integrate regulatory requirements early can generate economic added value from the PPWR. Not despite the regulation – but precisely because of it.“
Source: Smurfit Westrock
