One Industry, One Goal: Smarter Packaging For A Greener Future

As the European Union tightens its packaging legislation, ornamental horticultural businesses across the value chain are rethinking how they package, protect, and present plants and flowers. At the heart of this response is the Horti Sustainable Packaging Initiative (HSPI)—a Netherlands-based collaboration of 13 companies working together to accelerate sustainability and circularity in ornamental horticulture packaging.

The Horti Sustainable Packaging Initiative (HSPI) officially launched on 4 July 2023, when ten packaging manufacturers and suppliers signed a declaration of intent at Paardekooper Horti. Inspired by the model of the Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI), set up ten years earlier in 2013, HSPI aims to accelerate sustainable packaging efforts across the ornamental horticulture value chain. A feasibility study shaped its direction, focusing on three core themes: supply chain transparency and certification, circularity in materials and packaging, and life cycle assessments.

Nowadays, from recyclable flower sleeves to closed-loop logistics and bio-based postharvest products, HSPI members are demonstrating that when the industry aligns, real change becomes possible. “We must discuss sustainability together, for contributing to a future-proof floriculture industry,” says Herold Dongelmans, Programme Manager for Circularity at Greenport Aalsmeer and coordinator of HSPI. “This is a pre-competitive. We’re not developing products together. What we’re doing is aligning on sustainability—creating shared tools, standards and roadmaps that help the sector navigate EU legislation and move toward a circular and sustainable future.”

Currently, HSPI is particularly focused on the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), which came into effect in February 2025. It mandates that packaging must be designed for recycling and comply with certain guidelines and recyclability grades. By 2030, a minimum of 35 per cent of non-content-sensitive packaging must be made from recycled content, encompassing all packaging in ornamental horticulture. With thousands of packaging items in circulation across the horticultural sector, the challenge is complex, but progress is being made.

Packaging Gets a Circular Overhaul

Several HSPI members serve the everyday packaging needs of growers, bouquet makers, and florists—businesses on the frontline of change. Koen Pack, Decowraps, JBB Packaging and Paardekooper, for example, are developing recyclable packaging and advancing the use of more circular materials, such as sleeves for cut flowers. These solutions are particularly valuable in cases where reusable packaging isn’t feasible, offering growers and retailers a more sustainable single-use option.

Desch Plantpak and Modiform have long championed recycled plastics. Their thermoformed pots and trays are made from 100 per cent post-consumer plastic, with strong traceability and a low carbon footprint—showing that recycling doesn’t have to mean compromised performance.

“These are not just theoretical solutions, but practical, scalable ones that work for growers under real-world pressures,” says Dongelmans. “There’s a growing awareness that change is not only necessary—it’s doable.”

Postharvest Sustainability in Focus

It’s not just primary packaging evolving—postharvest care products are also getting a circular makeover. Chrysal is rolling out more sustainable sachets for its bio-based flower food, packaged in materials designed for easy recycling across various markets.

FloraLife, another HSPI participant, is reworking its product lines to prioritise circularity, reduced carbon footprints and improved product performance to significantly reduce cut flower waste. These changes reflect a wider shift: packaging isn’t just about protection or presentation anymore—it’s also about aligning with environmental values from farm to vase

Logistics, Labels, and Smart Materials

Some of HSPI’s members’ most valuable work lies in the packaging components that often go unnoticed. Anylabel produces fully recyclable plant labels, banners, and carry handles tailored to the demands of a circular economy.

Circular Plastics is tackling logistics waste with closed-loop systems that keep trays, crates and transport materials in circulation longer.
Packaging suppliers such as Twinpack, JBB Packaging, and MultiSupplies are also helping businesses transition by offering materials with recycled content, clear recyclability credentials, and better end-of-life pathways. Their work ensures that sustainability is embedded not just in the packaging itself but in how it’s sourced, handled, and understood.

Marketplace Leadership with a System-Wide View

As Europe’s largest floriculture marketplace, Royal FloraHolland (RFH) plays a vital role in coordinating sector-wide awareness and action.

Ahead of the legislation, RFH urged growers and suppliers to prepare for compliance and stay ahead of future market demands.

A statement online to its members read: “The changes from 2030 on reuse and recycling may seem far off,” RFH advised, “but it is important to think about this now and make appropriate choices.”

The cooperative has committed to making its operations PPWR-compliant, while also representing the sector’s interests in broader regulatory discussions.

Shared Tools and Shared Goals

For Dongelmans, the power of HSPI lies in its ability to translate complex regulatory challenges into tangible action.
The initiative is currently focused on developing and sharing tools to help businesses assess packaging footprints, understand material recyclability, and make smarter decisions throughout the value chain.

“It’s not just about building the tools—it’s about helping people use them well,” he says. “Whether it’s a grower, exporter or packaging supplier, everyone has a part to play.”

He is clear that pushback is no longer the issue. “There’s no debate about whether the PPWR needs to be followed—this is EU law,” he explains.

“But challenges remain when it comes to market behaviour. If retailers aren’t asking for sustainable options, buyers often default to the cheapest material, regardless of its recyclability.” That’s where HSPI steps in—to offer clarity, confidence, and collective action, even when commercial pressures make sustainability harder to prioritise.

Although HSPI’s scope is Europe and the UK, its members—many of whom operate internationally—are also taking these principles into global operations.

“We follow the European line,” Dongelmans explains, “but the spirit of collaboration and circular thinking goes far beyond borders.”

Support the realisation of HSPI’s sustainability ambitions by visiting www.hspi2030.com.

This article was first published in the April 2025 issue of FloraCulture International.