Empack Madrid 2026 will bring together 450 exhibiting brands and 260 speakers at IFEMA Madrid on November 11 and 12, with the European packaging regulation as the central theme of the programme.
On November 11 and 12, Pavilion 6 of the IFEMA Madrid venue will host Empack Madrid 2026, featuring 450 exhibiting brands and 260 speakers. On Wednesday, the fair will open from 9:00 to 18:00 and on Thursday from 9:00 to 18:30. According to the organisers, the previous edition attracted 12,200 unique visitors and 426 brands. This information comes from ecosistemastartup.com.
The event comes after the European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) began to be implemented. According to Europa Press, Regulation (EU) 2025/40 came into effect on August 12. Since that date, companies placing packaging on the market must take on the financing and organisation of their waste management, which requires them to join a SCRAP (Collective System of Extended Producer Responsibility).
The major new feature of the fair is the PPWR Academy, a conference space that opens the programme with two sessions dedicated to regulatory requirements, deadlines, the Declaration of Conformity, and practical cases, according to prnoticias. The regulation expands the definition of producer to include manufacturers, importers, and distributors of transport packaging. An importer of packaged products may fall within this scope even if they have never managed waste.
According to Interempresas, the regulation requires the issuance of the EU Declaration of Conformity (DoC) before marketing the packaging, with a requirement regarding hazardous substances that explicitly mentions metals and PFAS. Additionally, it includes obligations for harmonised labelling at the European level and a minimum content of recycled material in plastic packaging from post-consumer waste, with exceptions. The targets for reuse, recycled content, and recyclability will be applied progressively.
For the wine and beverage sector, the Empack call highlights three fronts: lightening glass bottles without losing strength during filling and transport, checking how labels, adhesives, capsules, and closures behave in recycling plants, and replacing plastic in palletising with certified cardboard.
The fair will enhance the Reuse Zone and incorporate the Reuse Alliance space, focused on reusable packaging for domestic and industrial channels. According to Interempresas, Empack Reuse debuts, featuring exhibitors such as Recyclia, Cartonplast, Engelvin, Prime Biopolymers, Implica, osapiens, Karton Iberia, CIPASI, Corplex, Envalora, Fych Technologies, and Ondaplast, several of whom are new to the event.
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