BARCODING, LABELLING & PACKAGING Why Irish manufacturers can’t


 By Adam Platts, Sales & Marketing Director, VPK Packaging UK & Ireland.


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rish manufacturing has built a reputation on agility. From food and beverage exports to 


sector. manufacturers are operating in highly  and responsiveness are increasingly important differentiators.


But agility becomes harder to maintain when complexity starts slowing the system down. Complexity is also being driven by supply chain decisions. Many Irish manufacturers source packaging from overseas markets, introducing longer lead times, increased transport requirements and greater exposure to disruption. As businesses look to improve resilience and responsiveness, packaging supply is becoming a strategic consideration in its own right.


PACKAGING IS NO LONGER SECONDARY


 stage of production. Something necessary, but operationally separate. That thinking no longer holds up, as packaging decisions now directly  optimisation, transport costs, retailer handling and sustainability performance. In an export-led manufacturing economy such as


Ireland’s, those factors matter enormously. According to IBEC, Ireland exports around 90 per cent of the food it produces, while Bord Bia recently reported record food, drink and horticulture exports of €19 billion in 2025. When products are moving through increasingly complex supply chains and into international markets,  not just a packaging issue.


COMPLEXITY IS THE HIDDEN COST Most manufacturers already understand the  underestimated is how much packaging variation contributes to it. Every new format creates another operational demand, for example more tooling, more stock holding, more line changeovers and more handling complexity. Individually, these pressures appear manageable. Collectively, they slow systems down and the challenge is particularly visible as product ranges  consumers expect choice and with this seasonal and promotional variation continues to grow.


16 May/June 2026 Irish Manufacturing


SMARTER PACKAGING SYSTEMS ARE BECOMING ESSENTIAL


The manufacturers responding best are not simply changing materials, rather they are rethinking packaging structurally. Rather than developing entirely bespoke formats


for every product line, standard formats and   operational consistency and less friction throughout  


Standardised packaging formats help reduce changeover time on production lines, simplify inventory management and improve pallet density during transport and warehousing. They also   additional operational burden. 


brand impact. Structural consistency can still sit alongside printed variation and shelf-ready presentation, allowing manufacturers to maintain  


how packaging is approached. Not as an isolated product, but as part of a wider operational system  term supply chain performance.


SUSTAINABILITY AND EFFICIENCY ARE BECOMING THE SAME CONVERSATION


Much of the sustainability debate around packaging has focused on material substitution. But the next


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 through things like reducing wasted space,  and removing unnecessary complexity from supply chains.


Those changes reduce environmental impact, but they also reduce cost and operational pressure. In  This is particularly relevant as regulations such as PPWR place greater focus on packaging and packaging waste. Manufacturers are no longer simply assessing whether packaging can be recycled. They  effectively it performs operationally and what cost implications it creates across the wider system.


SUPPORTING IRELAND’S MANUFACTURING ADVANTAGE


Irish manufacturers have built strong international reputations by being responsive, agile and operationally smart. Packaging now needs to support that agility rather than restrict it. Increasingly, that also means looking at packaging supply chains themselves. Local production, continuity of supply and closer collaboration between manufacturers and packaging partners can help reduce risk while improving responsiveness.  not created by production alone, it is built into the entire system.


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