Ecopack 2025: 121 companies awarded. And the new call is about to reopen

CONAI closes the twelfth edition of its Ecodesign Call with 359 applications and 217 selected projects. Environmental indicators improve: CO₂ emissions drop by 33%, energy consumption by 23%, and water use by 27%

Twelve editions have not diminished the vitality of Ecopack, CONAI’s Ecodesign Call: with 217 awarded cases submitted by 121 companies, the 2025 edition once again highlights a productive system capable of continuous innovation. The number of award-winning companies, slightly up from the previous edition (which saw 118 companies on the podium), reflects a steadily strengthening commitment. And the environmental data confirm it: Life Cycle Assessment indicators show an average reduction of 33% in CO₂-equivalent emissions, 23% in energy consumption, and 27% in water consumption compared to the same packaging before the ecodesign interventions.

The Call, a highly anticipated annual event, is about to reopen: applications for the 2026 edition will be accepted starting from March 3 (via the Eco Tool CONAI platform - Call Area), with the deadline set for April 30. The regulations will be published on conai.org.
"A clear step forward", comments CONAI Director General Simona Fontana, "and proof that process and product innovation are becoming indispensable components of industrial strategies. In recent years, companies have focused their efforts mainly in two directions: more efficient use of resources, by reducing weight and using less raw material, and greater recyclability. This trend mirrors the orientations of the new European Regulation and confirms the role of the Call as a truly operational tool".

€600,000 in prize money, five super-award winners and a special mention
The total prize fund amounts to €600,000, with €550,000 allocated to the awarded cases in proportion to the scores obtained, and €50,000 reserved for five super-awards for circular innovation. These recognitions highlight the most advanced solutions, capable of marking a tangible leap forward in ecodesign practices.
The super-awards were given to projects that successfully combined technical effectiveness, industrial vision, and a deeply circular approach.
Pilkington Italia revolutionized its automotive glass handling system by introducing the reuse of polyethylene separators: a virtuous cycle involving recovery, ultrasonic washing, and reuse of the blocks together with steel pallets, redesigned to optimize space and enable a 33% increase in units transported per trailer. An intervention that embodies the “use, return, repeat” logic.
Helan was awarded for rethinking an everyday object: a lip balm stick. It transformed it into a mono-material package by replacing ABS components with lighter, recyclable polypropylene elements. This change simplifies end-of-life management and reduces the use of virgin raw materials.
The case of Cereria Terenzi Evelino reflects a systemic approach: from a jar made of 100% recycled PET to a recycled polypropylene cap with a 76% weight reduction, an internal disc in recycled LDPE, and a significantly lightweight outer box. Together, these interventions create a new packaging ecosystem for the company’s Body Lotion, where every component has been redesigned to reduce impact without sacrificing functionality.
A similar trajectory, applied to the industrial instrumentation sector, characterizes Smurfit Westrock Italia (in collaboration with its client ReeR): it redesigned the packaging of photoelectric safety barriers by developing a system capable of producing tailor-made packaging, perfectly calibrated to the product. The result is a fully recycled, mono-material corrugated cardboard package that is lighter, more rational, and more efficient to transport.
Istituto Stampa, with the IdroR-Paper project, replaced laminated wrapping with paper treated with a water-repellent coating, certified Aticelca level C. This solution maintains the barrier performance required by the product while achieving a 24% saving in raw materials and improving logistics, with a 31% increase in shipped product at equal weight.
Alongside the super-awards, the special e-commerce mention was given to Pulcranet, which redesigned the packaging of its religious items by introducing custom-sized corrugated cardboard boxes, eliminating filler materials and reducing overall weight. Volume optimization made it possible to increase the number of packages per pallet, with immediate benefits for transport and the entire logistics cycle.
"We are observing growing maturity", explains Simona Fontana. "Solid projects, smart interventions, and an increasingly widespread ability to view sustainability not as an obligation but as a competitive lever. The Call continues to work because companies see it as a reliable reference point in the transition toward more circular models".

Selection of the award winners
As every year, analyses were carried out using the Eco Tool CONAI, the simplified Life Cycle Assessment system that measures the benefits of prevention actions.
Starting from this edition, validation of the tool and the cases has been entrusted to the international certification body RINA, while the selection of the super-awards was handled by the expanded technical committee composed of Laura Badalucco (IUAV University of Venice), Silvia Barbero (Polytechnic University of Turin), Claudia Chiozzotto (Altroconsumo), Barbara Del Curto (Polytechnic University of Milan), and Erik Ciravegna (University of Bologna).
"The work of the technical committee is invaluable", concludes Simona Fontana. "It allows us to recognize the most innovative solutions and to concretely value those who are building, day by day, a more responsible production model. Ecodesign, after all, is now fully a structural component of Italian industry".