Moving a successful show to a new venue is a tricky operation, and moving Labelexpo to Barcelona was no exception. Everybody at the show complained about the heat: sorry folks, the air conditioning was on the blink. Okay, that can happen, but it shouldn’t last several days. Then there was the inadequate signage: you don’t need an MBA to get that right. Third and last gripe from your correspondent: the Brussels exhibition park and its gardens had a certain 1930s charm. If anyone found something aesthetically pleasing about the Barcelona Fira they must have exceptionally good eyesight, or a strong magnifying glass. 

And speaking of magnifying glasses, only one person your correspondent spoke to thought that changing the show’s name to LOUPE was a good idea. Apparently the new owners took the advice of an outside consultancy (those MBAs again), who said what a thunderingly good idea it was. On the credit side, Labelexpo visitor numbers were apparently up, and most exhibitors thought they had gotten their money’s worth.

Labelexpo or Fachpack?

It was unfortunate that the German packaging show Fachpack took place just a week or two after Labelexpo. The German show, based in Nuremberg, counted 72,000 visitors over its three days (Labelexpo had 37,000 over four days) and predictably attracted more German visitors. 

Labelexpo unsurprisingly did well on Spanish and South/Central Americans. Both shows gave good room to AI developments, but Fachpack really went to town on environmentally friendly innovations; these were also present at the Barcelona show, which even offered exhibitors the Better Stands Program. This incentivizes exhibitors to utilize matrix waste and other recyclable materials to build stands. Predictably, Heidelberg exhibited at Barcelona and Nuremberg, as did narrow web specialists Domino, Epson, AstroNova, and Kurz, as well as substrate and paper manufacturers UPM and Herma. 

In 2027, the two shows will again be running almost simultaneously. It will be interesting to see whether the new LOUPE as a label-and-packaging show will take business from Fachpack, or vice versa. Or will Interpack 2027 and drupa 2028 throw everyone off balance?

Landa’s shipwreck

Landa Digital Printing (LDP), which filed for bankruptcy protection in June, has finally found a buyer. The buyer is Fimi, Israel’s largest private equity fund, which specializes in turning around and reviving companies. HP had apparently expressed interest, but the court accepted Fimi’s $80 million offer. 

It appears that the 100% takeover of Landa Corporation by an Israeli fund will allow the company’s technological expertise and patents to remain in Israel, which was no doubt a point in Fimi’s favor. 

According to local press reports, it could well take three years to turn around LDP’s financial situation (it was losing around $12 million per month). This will involve focusing its efforts on asset consolidation, with a less marketing-oriented approach and more emphasis on supporting existing users. There are currently around 50 Landa presses installed worldwide. 

In case anyone has forgotten, Benny Landa has good claim to be the father of digital printing, starting with his breakthrough technology of the Indigo press. More than 20 years after selling Indigo to HP for $850 million, the lights are finally going out on Benny Landa’s historic career.

More supplies of BOPP for IML and flexible packaging

Jindal Films Europe (JFE), an Indian manufacturer of specialty films, is reinforcing its commitment to innovation, sustainability, and long-term growth in Europe with a significant investment in its Brindisi site in Italy.

Once operational in the second half of 2026, this new line will make the Brindisi plant one of the largest film production sites in Europe, producing both polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) materials for a broad portfolio of specialty films. With this expansion, Brindisi will play a key role in supplying JFE’s customers across Europe, America, and Asia.

Omet and Durst

Like many European manufacturers, these two Italian pressmakers rushed to deliver to their US customers before the tariffs came into effect. “Now,” says Omet’s marketing manager Massimo Bellingardi, The US market went slack for us for a while, but it’s already starting to pick up, particularly within our sector of the label press market – mainly high-end, tailor-made machines – we have no really direct US competitor.” 

Interviewed at Labelexpo, Bellingardi said it was too soon to say whether the show was a success, but first impressions were that there were more Far-Eastern visitors than at previous shows, and fewer Germans and Scandinavians. 

Omet’s close cooperation with Durst, he said, was working well: “Each company has different strengths and that makes us complementary.” Omet used the show to unveil its new KFlex K6 platform, describing this as, “A benchmark printing system that combines maximum flexibility, efficiency, and quality for label and flexible packaging applications.” 

Sprechen Sie Englisch?

Just over the aisle from Omet, the Durst booth at Labelexpo was demonstrating the latest in its Tau G3 series, which supports print widths from 244 to 510mm. Durst also showcased its Durst-Omet KJet, a hybrid solution that combines digital inkjet with flexo printing and inline finishing. 

Christoph Gamper, CEO and co-owner of Durst Group, commented, “With more than 550 high-end Tau systems in the field and over 4,200 active inkjet installations worldwide, Durst is the leading force in digital production.” 

Your correspondent, always ready to ask an indiscreet question, inquired how these two Italian companies, Omet and Durst, communicated together when they have no common language (Durst is in Italy’s German-speaking region). “Oh, we just all speak English,” came the reply.

Bobst in the healthcare packaging sector

Some 10 years ago, three leading healthcare packaging specialists (in US, Ireland, and Singapore) merged to form Paxxus. The Irish plant in County Cork, which serves the group’s customers in mainland Europe and in Britain, has upgraded its machine park with two Bobst M6 inline flexo presses, a 7-color and a 4-color model.

Says Ciaran Foley, managing director at PAXXUS Ireland, “With the Bobst Master M6, we’re more productive. Our old flexo machines typically ran between 50 to 90 m/m. With our new M6 machines, run speed is typically 80 to 140 m/m. Both our new Bobst M6 presses run everything from 12-micron polyester to complex laminates and even 360-micron PET.”

More acquisitions in France

Despite having sky-high debts and no functioning government, France is still a hotbed of takeover activity. Two recent mergers are the work of Barcodis, a French leader in labeling, automatic identification, and traceability solutions. Barcodis currently has 200 employees and more than 8,000 customers in the retail, agri-food, transport, e-commerce, luxury goods, and pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries. 

In September, the company announced the acquisition of Up Trace, a Luxembourg-based publisher and integrator of industrial management software. Then, in the same month, it acquired Lorge. Based near Lyon, France, and with 60 employees, Lorge has leveraged more than a century of experience to position itself as a recognized specialist in adhesive label printing. From flexographic to digital printing, its teams combine technical expertise, particularly as a pioneer in the field of washable labels. Lorge has established itself as a key player in reusability, particularly in the agri-food, brewing, and wine industries, helping in their transition to reusable containers. This acquisition boosts Barcodis as a major player in French labels. 

Also in France, but on another wavelength, the UPM mill in Pompey is threatened with closure, the latest in a series of shutdowns linked to the falling demand for most graphic papers. 

Now comes a ray of hope from an unexpected direction: elections! France has had four shaky governments this year, and a no-confidence vote could bring fresh elections at any moment. With them would come a welcome surge in demand for paper, since all French elections have two rounds and are the paper-vote-in-ballot-box variety. Not a great thrill for the weary French electorate, but proof that it’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good.

From straw to kraft

Prezero, the German ecology consultant, together with its partners OutNature and Leipa are building an innovative straw fiber production plant at the Leipa site in Eastern Germany. 

“We are setting an important milestone for sustainable paper production and opening up exciting prospects for the future, since straw can bridge the gap between the loss of quality, which traditionally comes from eliminating fresh wood fibers,” explains Michail Ginsburg, managing director of OutNature. “We have already worked successfully with Leipa in the past on the topic of biomass. Together with Leipa, we will develop the potential of regionally available agricultural by-products and thus promote the overall social benefits for customers, farmers, and natural cycles.” 

Leipa plans to use the straw fibers at the Schwedt/Oder site in combination with waste papers and cartons. “As the first marketable product,” says Antonio Bellante, CEO of Leipa, “We plan to produce a white coated kraftliner substitute.” 

In addition to the sustainability aspect, the use of straw fibers has another positive effect: farmers in Northeastern Germany apparently have more straw than they know what to do with and will jump at having another sales outlet.

Anyone for garlic?

Most European postage stamps are now self-adhesive, and France has gone one stage further by launching “scratch and sniff” stamps. The baguette flavor went down well and has now been joined by a croissant-flavored variety. It might not have the same appeal if the next one down the line is snails in garlic.