Europe Flexible Plastic Packaging Market

The demand for adaptable plastic packaging, such as lightweight mailers, courier bags, and stand-up pouches, is rising due to the swift expansion of e-commerce in Europe, which is also changing consumer behavior and the logistics industry. In 2024, B2C e-commerce turnover increased by 7% to approximately USD 926 billion from about USD 862 billion in 2023. Accounting for inflation, real growth reached 4.6%, reflecting the resilience of the sector. When adjusted for inflation, real growth was 4.6%, indicating the sector's robustness (Source: Ecommerce Europe). After 2024, the momentum is likely to be maintained in 2025, with the support of the rising internet penetration and the growing number of shoppers, mainly in Eastern Europe, where turnover went up by 18% to almost USD 22 billion. In 2024, 77% of EU internet users made purchases online, which is significantly higher than 59% ten years ago. Such a tendency increases demand for space-saving and protective packaging that cuts down shipping weights by up to 20% per parcel and, as such, brings down logistics costs on one side and decreases carbon emissions by increased transport efficiency on the other. As the number of cross-border deliveries increases, presently making up 81% of regional turnover, recyclable and mono-material flexible films are becoming the main means to facilitate sector growth and, at the same time, comply with Europe's tough sustainability ?‍?‌‍?‍‌?‍?‌‍?‍‌standards.

Europe’s?‍?‌‍?‍‌?‍?‌‍?‍‌ packaging waste data from the recent past shows a major limitation for the flexible packaging sector. In 2023, the region produced 79.7 million tonnes of packaging waste (177.8 kg per person), and while this shows an 8.7 kg per person reduction of waste from 2022, it is still 21.2 kg higher than in 2013 (Source: Eurostat). Plastics made up 19.8% of the total waste, or 35.3 kg per person, but only 14.8 kg were recycled, a modest 42% rate. Over the past ten years, plastic packaging waste increased by 22%, while recycling barely improved (Source: Eurostat). The flexible packaging sector, which is heavily reliant on multi-layer films and pouches, is seeing these developments as the growing limitations, especially since “hard-to-recycle” formats will be subject to the highest modulated EPR fees under the PPWR from 2026. Besides PFAS restrictions and limited recycling capacity, producers are exposed to increasing costs and fewer viable material options unless they quickly move to mono-material structures, scalable chemical recycling, or validated reuse systems. If the redesign is not accelerated, flexible packaging may become economically unviable in the EU by 2030 (Source: European Commission/?‍?‌‍?‍‌?‍?PPWR).

Europe’s rapidly aging population and growing chronic-disease prevalence are accelerating demand for patient-centric, tamper-evident flexible packaging, a category largely insulated from the strictest PPWR and EPR cost pressures. There is a growing need for unit-dose pouches, stick-packs, strip packs, and high-barrier medical laminates for oral-film drugs, biologics, and home-care therapies that require the correct dosing, an opening that is easy for seniors, and a shelf life that is stable for a long time, even without refrigeration. What is more, medical and pharmaceutical packaging is a beneficiary of partial PPWR exemptions and lower eco-modulated EPR fees when they are justified for hygiene and patient safety (Source: PPWR). Even after PFAS restrictions take effect, essential high-barrier aluminium structures and specific medical-grade plastics may continue to be used where no safe alternatives exist. Converters with capabilities in cleanroom production, laser-scored tear features, and serialised track-and-trace systems are experiencing strong, premium-priced demand. For a flexible packaging sector facing regulatory and cost pressures in mainstream segments, healthcare and pharma represent a resilient, high-margin growth opportunity.

Increased public knowledge of ocean pollution, microplastics, and "forever chemicals" has elicited a significant consumer backlash against traditional plastic packaging. Recent pan-European polls (2024–2025) indicate that 72% of consumers consciously avoid brands utilizing non-recyclable flexible packaging, while 64% are prepared to spend an additional 5–15% for paper or compostable alternatives, and 58% endorse outright prohibitions on single-use plastic pouches. Big retailers (Carrefour, Tesco, REWE, Aldi) and brands (Danone, PepsiCo, L’Oréal) have reacted to this by announcing bold plans to reduce their plastic usage, thus aiming at cutting down the use of virgin fossil-based flexibles by 30–100% by 2030. This shift in demand is already leading to the reduction of traditional multi-layer film volumes, thus paving the way for paper-based and certified compostable pouches that are growing at a double-digit rate. Converters who are still using conventional PE/PET/Alu laminates and are oblivious to the consumer-driven exodus of their products face an existential threat that regulations alone could not ?‍?‌‍?‍‌?‍?‌‍?‍‌accomplish.