PMMI ELC: CPGs & OEMs Must Partner to Navigate Sustainability

That being said, Reynolds encouraged OEMs and material suppliers to stay ahead of the curve. “If you’re not already testing new materials and working with your CPG customers to retrofit existing lines, you’re behind.”

Machinery: The missing piece of the puzzle?

While materials stole the initial spotlight, both Prunesti and Shimmin called attention to machinery as an equally vital—yet often underdiscussed—aspect of sustainable operations. Shimmin emphasized the importance of OEM partnerships: “We’re not just looking for data or specs; we need to see evidence, case studies, test results.” She also recognizes that these partnerships require a lot of work and can be a challenge for OEMs.

“I think there have been cases where we've had to really co-develop equipment solutions to be compatible with new materials,” she said. “We do understand, however, that it's a pretty tall ask and a pretty challenging thing, and that's why I think coming back to the partnership is so important.”

Prunesti added that ConAgra’s engineering team works hand-in-hand with its sustainability group to evaluate every machine’s utility consumption when an OEM submits its technical data.

“The information we're going to be looking for—while it's great to have some general reference information available on websites, on what projects you've done, or initiatives you've done, or how you're addressing sustainability—what we're really looking for is [how it applies specifically] to our application,” he said. “With the equipment that's being proposed, what is its specific consumption [in our application], whether it's air, water, steam . . .  we're also focused on refrigeration, which is a big one for us.

“We don’t want to replace machines in kind. We want to upgrade efficiency and reduce emissions.”

Both agreed that OEMs offering real-time data, digital tools, and even video training modules would gain favor in RFP evaluations. “Forget the three-ring binders,” Prunesti said. “We’re handing out 4,000 iPads to plant floor operators. We need bite-sized, video-based training with language accessibility built in.”

From a cost perspective, the panel addressed how it addresses The panel acknowledged the elephant in the room: sustainable changes often come with higher costs. So how do companies justify the investment? Do they tack on a percentage to CapEx that is devoted specifically to sustainability efforts?

“We use different hurdle rates,” said Prunesti. “A standard ROI project might need a 20% return. For sustainability projects, we’re comfortable with 10–12%, which is a significant reduction, but still more than covers the cost of capital and is still a benefit to the company and the brand from a margin perspective.” In some cases, avoiding the future costs of carbon credits or EPR surcharges can tip the scales.

Shimmin added that Mars builds sustainability into its capital plans upfront. “For example, if we're buying new flow wrappers, they're going to be paper-ready,” she said. “So having that expectation and that standard baked in from setting the global technology standard has been really useful, in making sure that it is part of every project, and that capability is there for us.”

In her opinion, this points back to the OEM partnership where together they have trialed enough materials to get an understanding of what does and doesn’t run.

The EPR Factor: Policy meets production

With five U.S. states set to enact Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws by mid-2025, the pending bills for packaging waste obviously have the attention of brand owners. Brand owners will soon receive bills for packaging waste based on recyclability. “This is going to hit the balance sheets,” Prunesti said. “And there’s no national standard yet, so you’re dealing with five different regulatory frameworks—and five different checks.”

With different rules, he presented the example that CPGs aren’t sure how each state’s EPR might “tax” a multi-layer paper board product, that might have foil in it, vs. a monolayer plastic. He also added that most EPR states, if not all, are using third-party evaluators.

“This also puts in a lot of other questions about whether it is being counted correctly?” he said. “It's going to be interesting this first time around to see what comes to us from a bill or surcharge, and then how do we reconcile it to make sure it's fair and equitable to what their law is?”

Reynolds pointed out that in his research, most states have tabbed CAA (Circular Action Alliance) as the third-party, ensuring at least some level of consistency.

Shimmin sits on a team at Mars that addresses the company’s global sustainability, adding that and packaging rules are even more stringent in Europe and can impact a CPGs bottom line more severely than EPR fine—for lack of a better word. “In some cases in the different regions of Europe, non-compliance means you can’t sell the product at all,” she said. That’s a game-changer, and one reason Mars is pushing toward “paper-ready” equipment in all new installations.

The panel concluded with a consensus that sustainability is now part of any successful CPG and OEM relationship. It's a shared duty that is no longer just a drive to do good for the environment, but a necessity for remaining viable in a changing regulatory and consumer landscape.