Sean Riley: Hi, and welcome to End of the Line, our weekly recap where PMG editors get together to discuss trends, innovations, and key topics we’ve been seeing—whether over the past week or the past few weeks, depending on timing.
We have Liz Cuneo from Healthcare Packaging, Matt Reynolds from Packaging World, and Derrick Teal from Pro Food World. Liz, since this is your baby, we’ll let you kick things off. What’s coming across your desk?
Liz Cuneo: Thanks, Sean. It was actually a busy week for over-the-counter brands. I had two interesting interviews—one about a new product launch and another about a package redesign.
The redesign was for Genexa’s children’s OTC medicines. They’re really leaning into a clean, simple look to help parents quickly find the right medicine. We talked about the role of color, white space, and overall shelf presence.
The other story was about a new UTI kit for women. It bundles multiple items—medicine, test strips, and even a drink to help flush out infection. What’s interesting is that regulations don’t allow all those components to be packaged in a single box.
So, they had to separate them and then physically bundle everything together using cardboard and a plastic overlay. It still looks cohesive, but it’s a workaround driven by regulatory constraints—something we see often in healthcare packaging.
It was also a good reminder of how important it is to involve packaging early. In this case, they didn’t anticipate the regulatory issue—it was an “oh no” moment—but they caught it early enough to pivot effectively.
You’ll be able to read more about that story on our website in the coming weeks.
Sean: Very cool. Matt, how about you? I know you were traveling—anything interesting come across your desk?
Matt Reynolds: Yeah, I just got back from ISTA—the International Safe Transit Association. There are two main areas: temperature-controlled packaging, mostly for pharma and medical devices, and the side I was on—transit packaging for e-commerce and parcel delivery.
One term that came up—courtesy of a major retailer starting with “W”—is sustained horizontal compression.
It sounds funny, but it’s actually a big deal. For years, brands have focused on lightweighting, reducing materials, and right-sizing packaging to avoid shipping air. But with increasing warehouse automation, especially at scale, there’s a new requirement.
Retailers are depalletizing entire mixed-product layers at once. That means packages need to withstand not just vertical compression, but horizontal forces as well. So brands now have to factor that into case strength, material selection, and overall packaging design.
The other interesting development was AI in packaging testing. Traditionally, we rely on lab and field testing. But there’s a new concept—still emerging—called PackSense from Michigan State.
It uses AI to analyze consumer reviews—like Amazon feedback—to identify packaging failures. For example, if customers complain about leaking bottles or broken pumps, that data can be aggregated and analyzed at scale.
It won’t replace traditional testing, but it could complement it by giving real-world performance insights.
Sean: That’s a really interesting use of AI—especially in packaging.
I saw something similar but on the machinery side. Universal Robots introduced an “AI trainer” at Nvidia’s GTC event. It’s essentially a follow-the-leader system where a human guides a robot through a task, and another AI-enabled system learns by mimicking those movements.
Instead of just feeding in data, you’re physically demonstrating the task. That could be huge for training robots in complex or hazardous environments.
What fascinates me is how quickly companies are embracing AI. Compared to something like remote access—which people were hesitant about until COVID forced adoption—AI seems to be getting much faster acceptance.
Derrick Teal: That’s interesting, especially considering some of the risks. I read about a new AI system that, during testing, tried to cover its own tracks after finding answers it wasn’t supposed to access—like cheating on a test and then hiding the evidence. So, there are definitely vulnerabilities to think about, especially in industrial settings.
Sean: Right—AI learning from AI raises some big questions. Derrick, anything else on your side?
Derrick: Yeah, Tyson announced another plant closure. They had already announced one earlier this year and reduced shifts at another facility. This latest closure highlights ongoing challenges in the beef industry.
Costs are rising—feed, fertilizer, and other inputs—and food manufacturers operate on thin margins. When costs go up, those increases eventually hit consumers.
There are also broader factors at play: changing consumer preferences, sustainability concerns, and even demographic shifts. As populations change, so does demand.
I wouldn’t be surprised if we start to see alternative proteins—or even other meats like sheep—fill some of that gap. Historically, mutton was a major protein source before World War II, but consumer preferences shifted afterward.
Sean: That’s fascinating—I didn’t realize how much history played into that shift.
Well, this was great. It’s always good to catch up and hear what everyone’s working on. Thanks, Liz, Matt, and Derrick for joining.
All: Thanks—see you next week.
