After seven intensive days at the trade fair, Thomas Dohse, Director of interpack, draws a thoroughly positive conclusion from the world's largest trade fair for packaging and packaging machinery. Despite initial concerns about geopolitical tensions, the event proved to be a great success.
International appeal confirmed
„We are greatly relieved. It was a top trade fair,“ Dohse summarises in an interview with the packaging journal. Visitors from over 160 countries came to Düsseldorf – proof of the interpack's continuing international significance. „I was surprised that we weren't affected that much by the geopolitical challenges,“ explains the trade fair director.
The theme of innovative materials, in particular, came into focus. „This primarily has a very strong impact on the materials side too,“ said Dohse, referring to the PPWR regulation. Personal exchange proved to be crucial: „You have to reassure yourselves, you have to look each other in the eye, you have to talk to each other.“
Packaging as a systemically relevant sector
The pandemic has permanently changed the image of the packaging industry. „Before COVID, people said, oh, there's too much packaging. But after COVID, everyone understood how important packaging is for product protection, for transport, for hygiene,“ explains Dohse.
Despite a difficult economic climate, the industry continues to show growth rates, driven by global population and consumption growth. As a result, packaging is no longer positioned as a cost factor or an environmental burden, but as an infrastructure for global supply – a change in image that also shaped the discussions in Düsseldorf.
Olympic Games for the Packaging Industry
Traditionally, interpack provides a boost in order intake. „interpack is the industry's innovation benchmark,“ Dohse proudly emphasises. The next edition is planned for 2029, with the exact date to be announced in the coming weeks.
Dohse hopes that visitors will remember Düsseldorf as a „global stage for processing and packaging“ – as the „Olympic Games of the packaging industry“. The 2026 balance sheet shows: Despite global uncertainties, interpack remains the most important industry meeting worldwide – and the place where innovations, alliances, and strategic decisions are made.
