Be first to discover what’s next at London Packaging Week 2026

Packaging Solutions

From the first commercial Cool>Can and a UK premiere from Coca-Cola to a packaging brief tackled live and an exclusive James Cropper screening, London Packaging Week will give visitors an early look at what’s coming next, alongside critical updates on the next phase of EPR and the countdown to DRS.

On 16 and 17 September, London Packaging Week 2026 will open its doors at Excel London for two days of discovery.

More than 5700 packaging professionals representing over 2600 brands are expected to come together with more than 220 suppliers and more than 90 speakers, with thousands of packaging solutions spanning luxury, beauty, premium drinks, FMCG, design, materials and manufacturing.

Attendees can expect to discover everything from emerging technologies to 10 new show experiences, as well as direct insights from the organisations implementing some of packaging’s biggest regulatory changes. These include PackUK, the official scheme administrator for the UK’s packaging EPR programme, and the recently appointed UK Packaging PRO, which will address the scheme’s progress, next priorities, and implications.

Other headline sessions include DRS countdown: from 2026 readiness to 2027 reality, which brings together Julian Hunt, non-executive director of Exchange for Change, Andy Bagnall, director general of the British Soft Drinks Association, and other industry voices to examine the practical realities of implementing packaging reform.

Other discoveries waiting at Excel London will be considerably more immediate, with visitors able to experience a fully branded, commercialised and shelf ready Cool>Can for the first time. Developed by deltaH Innovations, the debut technology uses a push button activated reaction involving water and a patented salt based coolant to rapidly chill a room temperature beverage, producing a temperature drop of around 10 to 15°C depending on the starting temperature, without compromising recyclability.

Another genuine first comes from Coca-Cola, as Francisco Nogueira of Coca-Cola research and development EMEA joins Sam Lucking of inclusive design specialist Unhidden for the UK premiere of the Schweppes Skittle Evolution Bottle. The session will reveal the story behind the evolution of Schweppes’ iconic glass bottle in Great Britain and Ireland, replacing a decade defining pack while preserving its distinctive brand heritage. Visitors will get an early look at how the redesign combines stronger brand expression with improved packaging performance, including a lighter glass structure and paper label, and hear how collaboration, technical innovation and design expertise helped bring the new bottle to life.

Attendees will also see a packaging brief tackled live on stage for the first time at London Packaging Week, with the audience helping to determine the challenge. ‘From complexity to clarity’, Aura Global will respond in real time to a brief shaped by real world packaging challenges raised in the room. Taking place at 11:05 on Wednesday 16 September on the FMCG Stage, the session allows visitors to watch the packaging development process and help set the problem Aura Global will solve.

British papermaker James Cropper will also host the exclusive premiere of the trailer for The Last Mill Standing. The screening turns attention from the finished pack to the manufacturing heritage, craft and specialist knowledge behind its materials, adding a very different form of discovery to the two day programme.

Across the exhibition floor, the expanded Innovation Gallery provides another opportunity to discover what is new. An expert panel has selected 26 innovations spanning luxury, beauty, drinks and FMCG, from Blue Ocean Closures’ fibre based NutraCap and Zerobox’s reusable modular delivery system to the English made Sovereign Bottle from William Croxson & Son, MonoBox’s patent pending single material gift box and Fuji Seal’s carbon neutral shrink tunnel.

The event itself will also look different. Of the 18 dedicated experiences across London Packaging Week, 10 are new for 2026, creating more ways for visitors to find emerging ideas, technologies and people.

The Discovery Theatre provides a platform for start ups, SMEs and suppliers to showcase emerging technologies and ideas, while a dedicated Podcast Studio creates space for candid conversations with designers, innovators and decision makers. The Start Up Zone brings together emerging businesses and disruptive thinking, whilst the new Design Hub provides a new home for packaging’s creative community.

Visitors can also turn discovery into a journey around the show through the new Discovery Trail, uncovering innovations, inspiring exhibitors and must see features across the show floor.

Josh Brooks, divisional director – packaging portfolio at Easyfairs, said: ‘Discovery has been the idea behind London Packaging Week 2026 from the beginning, but what makes that particularly exciting now we are just days away is how many genuine firsts visitors will experience.

‘They can see a technology move from prototype to commercial reality, witness a UK premiere, help shape a packaging brief that will be tackled live on stage and hear directly from the organisations responsible for some of the biggest changes facing packaging.

‘You might arrive looking for a supplier, an answer to a regulatory question or simply some inspiration. The ambition is that everyone leaves having discovered something they didn’t know, seen something they hadn’t seen or met someone they didn’t know before they walked through the doors.’

London Packaging Week 2026 takes place on 16 and 17 September at Excel London. Registration is free for industry professionals and includes access to the exhibition, conference programme, Innovation Gallery and feature areas.