The packaging we use every day is not a neutral choice. On 26 May 2026, sister project E-OilÉ brought that message to the centre of its M12 Workshop, gathering scientists, industry experts and civil society organisations for a 90-minute online session on how everyday packaging decisions affect human health and the planet.
The programme covered two critical dimensions of packaging safety. Bastiaan Schupp from DG SANTE addressed the safety of food-contact plastic packaging, while Maria Westerbos of the Plastic Soup Foundation examined the risks linked to cosmetic-contact plastics, bringing the civil society perspective to a conversation that too often stays within technical circles. Quim Nuñez and Alberto Fragapane from NOVAMONT and OIMO then presented E-OilÉ’s biodegradable polymer solutions for monodose packaging. Malgorzata Golebiewska from DG Environment closed the technical sessions with a deep dive into sustainability labels, helping attendees navigate an increasingly complex landscape of green claims.
ECO Imagination joined the workshop as part of UPCYCLE’s active collaboration with the E-OilÉ consortium. The session touched directly on themes central to UPCYCLE’s dissemination strategy: both projects are advancing biodegradable and recyclable alternatives to conventional plastics, and both recognise that the transition to circular packaging requires consumers, policymakers and industry to be informed in equal measure.
When Horizon Europe projects working on biodegradable packaging choose to open their science to the public, it signals something important: the materials of the future need advocates today.