Henkel’s food safe packaging initiative

There is an increasing demand for safe, secure, and sustainable packaging driven by heightened awareness on food safety and health. Rising legislations are influencing food safe packaging development, design, and materials in use. Moreover, globalization of food networks further emphasizes the need for transparency and traceability along the food and packaging value chain.

We have often called adhesives “the forgotten layer” as they have been perceived as a relatively small piece in the total packaging compared to inks, boards and foils that have been more under the public eye for meeting safety standards in food packaging. While in Europe there are no specific legislations for adhesives in food contact, there are legislations valid to adhesives, and hence part and parcel of ensuring food safe packaging.

At Henkel, we are aware of the necessity of adhesive solutions for food safe packaging and have made this our guiding principle. With the launch of our Food Safe Packaging Initiative, we continue to drive forward our focus on this ever-important topic.

With the Food Safe Packaging Initiative, we take a closer look at adhesive-related aspects of food packaging and invite collaborators along the food packaging value chain to an open dialogue striving to constantly improve safety and sustainability of packaging for the industry.

Our ambition is to be ahead of regulatory developments, markets, and media. We aim to provide a new level of food safe packaging adhesives – committed to protecting brands and consumers, now and in the future.

For Henkel, our commitment to transparency includes broadening communication on food safe packaging to address a wider range of stakeholders – from experts like packaging developers and food safety managers to generalists like plant managers, brand owners, retailers – and even consumers. It means sharing adhesive expertise right from development phase of packaging, through to running safe processes during packaging operations to ultimately having the right documentation to prove safety to customers.

We provide a comprehensive package of food safe adhesive solutions and services.