SHOW PREVIEW: WestPack 2019 Conference

West Pack 2019 Conference is being held February 5-7, at the Anaheim Convention Center. No doubt, you are planning to attend because it offers exclusive educational sessions addressing the industry’s sustainability perceptions, trends and challenges. Its education schedule highlights the latest trends and developments in the packaging industry, including 3D printing, food packaging, automation technologies and more.

We’re going to take a look at those educational opportunities below, but in the meantime, do not forget to also bookmark this page as we’ll be adding up-to-date news items from exhibitors at West Pack as they become available. We’ll share up-to-date coverage of the products, materials, components and technologies you need to check out from the 1900 suppliers attending the show.

If you’re not able to attend, our online show preview is a must-read for highlights. Here’s a summary of the educational opportunties.

Panel: Sustainable Packaging—What Really Matters to Consumers?

February 7, 11:00 a.m. – 11:55 a.m., Center Stage

Session: A Hot Trend in Packaging

February 5, 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Center Stage

Speaker: Greg Clark, Cofounder & CEO, Inductive Intelligence. This session will speak to the new developments in smart packaging for heat-retentive packaging. Attendees will hear from the purveyor of an exciting new packaging technology that harnesses inductive heat to adjust the temperature of a package’s contents.

Panel: Clean Packaging—The Next Step in Consumer Transparency

February 5, 3:00 p.m. – 3:55 p.m., Center Stage

Moderator: Weldon Williams, Senior Director, Quality Assurance, Packaging — Global Lead. As more and more consumers demand transparency about what they’re eating, some are applying a more critical eye to their food packaging. Given recent examples of food packaging issues such as bisphenol-A (BPA) and fluorocarbons, “clean packaging” is likely to follow behind clean food as a focal point for consumers and an opportunity for brand owners to build trust with them. In this panel discussion, we’ll explore the consumer attitudes driving the shift to clean packaging, look at what companies are doing to meet the demand, and identify pitfalls to avoid.”

Panel: Packaging for eCommerce’s Toughest Challenges 

February 6, 1:00 p.m. – 1:55 p.m., Center Stage

Moderator: Packsize. Panelists: Emmy Corman, Package Design Engineer, The Dollar Shave Club, Ellen Kyle, Industrial Designer, Farmgirl Flowers. Consumers today are accustomed to getting anything and everything delivered to their doorstep, from razors to meal kits and packaging makes this convenience possible. This session will explore how brands have used innovative packaging to solve some of the toughest challenges in e-commerce.

Session: A Sea Change in Plastics—How New Packaging Could Save Our Oceans

February 7, 2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m., Center Stage

With a patch of plastic trash twice the size of Texas swirling in the ocean halfway between Hawaii and California, environmentalists are becoming concerned for the use of plastics. As awareness of ocean plastics pollution grows, the plastic packaging industry is increasingly being called upon to do something about it. In this session, we’ll hear innovative solutions to the growing problem.