Leaders from around the world and representing many facets of the packaging industry make up the independent panel of judges for Dow’s 2019 Packaging Innovation Awards. The 14 judges represent a global perspective across the fields of design, engineering, retail, converting and academia, from organizations including Amazon, Bemis, Mintel, P&G and others.

The judges will meet in Houston, Tex., in May to draw on their experience and industry insights to select the winners of this year’s awards. The judging panel evaluates each entry based on the criteria of technological advancement, Responsible Packaging and Enhanced User Experience and selects winners based on the total scores.

“This independent, international and cross-functional panel of packaging experts is the key to recognizing the best packaging innovations on the market today,” said Diego Donoso, business president for Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics. “Innovation in packaging can be better protection for e-commerce shipping. It could be finding a way to make a classic package with far fewer resources. Or it could be something that seems simple but makes the package a lot easier to use, like an easy-to-open cap or closure. These judges have the experience and expertise to recognize those game-changing innovations.”

This year’s judges are:

• Lead judge, David Luttenberger, global packaging director, Mintel
• Philippe Blank, head of innovation & sustainability, Henkel
• Aparecido Borghi, senior business manager of packaging and supply chain, Daymon Latam
• Olaf Clemens, President & CEO, SN Maschinenbau GmbH
• Scott Fisher, design director, Blue Clover Studios, part of Berry Global
• Eileen Franer, section head of Global Oral Care Packaging, P&G
• Nina Goodrich, director, Sustainable Packaging Coalition and executive director of GreenBlue
• Kim Houchens, worldwide director of Customer Packaging Experience, Amazon
• Qiang Lu, vice president, R&D Asia Pacific, Bemis
• Claire Sarantopoulos, senior scientist, Instituto de Tecnologia de Alimentos (ITAL)
• Gisela Schulzinger, president, Brazilian Packaging Association (ABRE)
• Tim Sykes, Head of Content, Packaging Europe
• Marzban Thanevala, senior vice president for Innovation, Business Development and Marketing, Huhtamaki-PPL
• Frank Wang, packaging R&D director, Mengniu Dairy

“This year’s panel of judges represents the entire packaging industry which allows them to recognize the most innovative packaging that is commercially available today,” said Marco Amici, global marketing leader, Dow Pack Studios and Packaging Innovation Awards leader. “The panel operates completely independently which allows the truly innovative packaging to rise to the top and be recognized regardless of the company that submitted the entry, the country where it was developed or the material that is used.”

This is Dow’s second year sponsoring the independent awards program that brings together the most innovative packaging the world has to offer, carrying on the tradition started by DuPont more than 30 years ago. More information is available at www.DowPackagingAwards.com. Submitting a nomination is free and applicants are not required to use Dow or DuPont materials in the products they enter. Innovations can be submitted through March 29, 2019. All submissions in the 2019 Packaging Innovation Awards must be commercially available when they are entered. This year features a streamlined entry process with a simplified online form to submit and track entries, as well as upload accompanying images and videos.