FINAT welcomed 240 delegates from 26 countries to Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on May 21-23, 2025, for its European Label Forum 2025. The event marked the self-adhesive label association’s 65^th annual conference and tabletop exhibition.

Alongside the conference, 32 leading industry suppliers took part in the tabletop exhibition, including press manufacturers Domino, Durst, Mark Andy, Nilpeter, and Omet, and material suppliers Avery Dennison and UPM Raflatac.

The conference program contained a wealth of information on the key factors affecting the sector: the geopolitical context, labelstock consumption trends, consumer habits, the convergence of narrow, mid and wide web printing, and the impact of AI. But sustainability was the principal focus, with the European sector under pressure from upcoming EU legislation. New legislation will set strict recyclability, reuse, and recycled content targets by 2030.

Geopolitical context

The geopolitical context was outlined by keynote speaker Ron Keller, the former Dutch ambassador to Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, and China, and top advisor to the EU, the IMF, the World Bank, and to the Dutch Ministries of Finance and Foreign Affairs. After the Cold War, the West – naively, in retrospect – was convinced that the free market and democracy would prevail worldwide. Global superpowers sought to cooperate. But the geopolitical situation has become even more complex in the three years since Russia invaded Ukraine and superpowers are colliding again, dampening global economic growth.

The war in Ukraine rages on, energy and commodity prices are soaring, and Europe’s economic recovery remains fragile. At the same time, European competitiveness is at stake. China is flooding global markets, the US is shaking up trade and geopolitics, and protectionism is making a comeback.

Keller was blunt in his assessment of the failings of the European Union but optimistic that attitudes are beginning to change. “On paper, the EU has progressed a bit, but in reality we lag behind. We were much too passive over the past 35 years. But I have the strong conviction – and this is why I remain positive – that in the European Union we are beginning to wake up. We realize we need not only to enhance our competitiveness, but to reform.”

PPWR pressure

The challenges of adapting to the EU’s upcoming Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) were tackled in panel featuring FINAT’s Pablo Englebienne, Francesca Stevens of Europen (tuning in online), senior consultant Jan ‘t Hart, Marius Tent of CELAB Europe, and Jean-Emile Potaufeux of PRE/Recyclass.

PPWR sets strict recyclability, reuse, and recycled content targets by 2030. Label recyclability is now essential, not optional: labels must no longer hinder the recyclability of packaging, or risk being banned from EU markets.

“It’s just around the corner,” warned Marius Tent of CELAB-Europe. “There needs to be a sense of urgency. This is the biggest change that happened in the last 30 or 40 years. It will decide who will remain in the market or not. It is a challenge but also an opportunity. There are no silver bullets, but if there is one – it’s collaboration.”

“Producers of packaged goods must be aware of what goes into their packaging,” said FINAT’s Pablo Englebienne. “There must be a flow of information.”

Innovation and sustainability increasingly go hand-in-hand, said Paul Jenkins, founder and managing director of The PackHub. The UK consultancy tracks packaging developments and uploads innovative examples to an Innovation Zone and Patent Zone on its website. “Just about every innovation we track is driven by sustainability,” he said. He identified five sustainable packaging trends: recycling – increasingly necessary given upcoming PPWR legislation; bio-packaging alternatives – options such as compostable packaging, which move away from plastics; paperization – again motivated by a desire to use less plastic; refill/reuse – prolonging packaging’s life; and reduction – using fewer or lighter materials.

Sustainability is no longer just about compliance – it’s reshaping innovation, agility, and supply chains, said Thomas Reiner, CEO of Berndt & Partner Group. PPWR and global EPR regulations demand radical packaging redesign, with a focus on recyclability, material reduction, mono materials, and PCR use – or risk market exclusion. Design, adhesives, inks, and recyclability must meet strict thresholds or risk being classified as “harmful packaging components” under PPWR Article 5.

In a panel on the future of the industry, Gabriela Neves of All4Labels spoke of the need “to combine technology and sustainability.” “Consumers want labels and packaging that look nice, that are responsible, and that interact with them,” she said. “The label is key to making the overall packaging sustainable and recyclable.”

European label trends

Labelstock consumption is bouncing back, but the recovery remains uneven, said FINAT managing director Jules Lejeune. Following a sharp contraction in 2023, as excess stock worked its way through the supply chain and inflation dampened consumer spending, growth rebounded in the first two quarters of 2024, before being curtailed by sluggish economic conditions. Labelstock consumption has now returned to 2016 levels – a good result, Lejeune pointed out, given that last year it remained at the same quantity as 2013.

Of the top five European markets by labelstock volume consumed – France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, only Spain is surpassing 2021 levels. PP rolls continue to increase their share of the total market, while direct thermal is showing good growth thanks to the rise of e-commerce and personalization. White coated raw materials have declined in share but remain the largest category.

According to Corey Reardon, CEO of AWA Alexander Watson Associates, the global label market, across all formats, uses around 74 billion square meters of material annually; 48% is produced in Asia-Pacific, 22% in Europe, and 18% in North America. By format, 39% of the total market is self-adhesive, 35% is glue-applied and 20% is shrink sleeve labeling. Transport/logistics is the fastest-growing end-use segment, reflecting growth in VIP labeling. Flexible packaging and linerless label applications are on the rise, said Reardon, and there is growing interest in RFID and direct-to-container print.

Reardon emphasized that the slowdown in M&A activity is most likely due to economic factors. Activity will ramp up again in the future, he said.

Consumer spending habits are trending toward healthier lifestyles, strategic spending, and sustainability, according to Linda Lichtmess, strategic market analyst, Food & Drinks, Euromonitor. Economic conditions have caused a decline in consumer confidence in most countries, she said. “Consumers want to spend their money more thoughtfully, prioritizing value.”

There is a focus on living healthily for longer: “People want to feel good, look good, and be healthy.” But financial constraints mean that consumers sometimes find it harder to choose sustainable options. “There is more of a practical approach – price matters,” she added.

AI

At the beginning of the conference’s second day, FINAT showed an AI-produced video that looked at the future of the label industry. The prompts for the video took the form of potential 2030 scenarios that had been talked about the previous day. The video highlighted the importance of labels not only for product decoration but also regulatory compliance and supply chain transparency.

Bram Verhoef, co-founder and director of customer success at Axelera AI, discussed the potential impact of edge computing (as opposed to cloud-based), an AI-based technology that enables faster, more private, and cost-efficient AI applications directly on devices such as drones and smart cameras.

AI technology is already impacting manufacturing in areas such as quality control, safety compliance, and predictive maintenance, said Verhoef – the latter is used by various press manufacturers in the label industry.

Advances in robotics – combined with AI – are leading to autonomous robots enhancing industrial operations. AI is also becoming more creative and can assist with task such as label design – though Verhoef emphasized the continued need for human input.

André van Straten, author of The Creative Revolution, proposed that human creativity combined with AI will be “the best of both worlds.”

“We have vision and intuition – the ability to think about a problem and come up with a solution. AI can speed up this process,” he said.

Flexible packaging

The opportunities for label converters in the flexible packaging market were emphasized in a presentation by Jörg Schönwald of Schönwald Consulting, and a panel session featuring Erik van Sloten of Bobst, Michael Schrameyer of Coveris Flexibles, Alex Aarslew-Jensen of Nilpeter, and Noël Kasmi of adapa Group.

“The lines between narrow, mid and wide web printing are blurring,” said Schönwald. Label converters increasingly install presses of sufficient web width to tackle products beyond their traditional remit. Adept at handling quick turnaround times, short runs, and personalization, they are well-placed to take advantage of these same trends emerging in the flexible packaging market. He pointed to the rapid growth of stand-up pouch consumption – from 2.6 billion units in 1996 to nearly 60 billion today.

The panel agreed that flexible packaging represents a strong opportunity for label converters. “Label printers have agility in their DNA – this is a big advantage,” said adapa Group’s Noël Kasmi.

“The trend is toward agility and smaller runs, which is a challenge for us,” admitted Michael Schrameyer of Coveris Flexibles.

Nilpeter’s Alex Aarslew-Jensen noted that fast response time, customization, and more SKUs were “all things that we are used to in the label sector.”

Bobst’s Erik van Sloten pointed out that flexible packaging producers should install a narrower press to tackle shorter runs and free up capacity on their wider machines.

There were also notes of caution about the challenges involved. “You must fulfill a lot of requirements on the regulatory side,” said Schrameyer. “And brands want continuity between their different types of packaging.”

“It is a direct packaging product rather than secondary, which is often the case for labels,” said Kasmi. “BRC certification is needed for food packaging, for example. Often the best way to resolve the challenges is to form a partnership with a wide web converter.”

“The brand owners are often set in their ways and used to sourcing from wide web converters,” said Aarslew-Jensen. “It’s a challenge – but doable – to educate them about the possibilities a label converter can bring.”

Next year’s FINAT European Label Forum will take place in Seville, Spain, on May 27-29.