Matt Reynolds: Hi, I'm Matt Reynolds, editor of Packaging World magazine, and I'm here with my colleague Liz Cuneo, editor of Healthcare Packaging magazine.
We're in Las Vegas at the Cosmopolitan for GS1 Connect. This is my second year attending, and it's always a great event with valuable information. There are a lot of brand owners and retailers here. Liz, it's your first time attending—what are your first impressions?
Liz Cuneo: It's been awesome. There's a really strong healthcare track, which is great to see. What's also unique is seeing multiple industries represented, including retail, CPG, and e-commerce. It provides a holistic view of how different sectors are approaching barcode-related challenges.
Matt Reynolds: I agree. Some of the themes are similar to last year, but brands and CPG companies—and really all stakeholders—seem more accustomed to the idea of Sunrise 2027 and the transition to 2D barcodes.
I have an example here on an Olay Cleansing Melt product from Procter & Gamble, developed in conjunction with Digimarc, one of the sponsors. Increasingly, packaging is becoming an extension of shelf space. Consumers can access information about product provenance, usage instructions, expiration dates, and much more directly from the package. Consumers are becoming more comfortable using these tools all the time.
What are you seeing on the show floor?
Liz Cuneo: Similar themes. There have been some really interesting RFID and NFC examples in the expo area. It's exciting to see how companies are incorporating smart labels, both for manufacturing and supply chain visibility and for consumer engagement.
I saw a great example on a medical device where a user could simply tap their phone using NFC—without opening a camera app—and immediately access directions for use and product information. It's a very seamless experience.
Matt Reynolds: Anything that eliminates the need to find an app and scan something is pretty compelling.
There's also been a lot of discussion about the National Drug Code (NDC) moving from 10 digits to 12 digits and what that transition will involve. One expert described it as bigger than DSCSA and more complicated than Y2K, which was an interesting comparison.
Liz Cuneo: It really is an alphabet soup of acronyms. The NDC transition is going to be a major challenge that every stakeholder has to address. It affects manufacturers, hospitals, pharmacies, and virtually every point in the supply chain.
Matt Reynolds: Speaking of alphabet soup, another topic every brand owner is focused on now is EPR—Extended Producer Responsibility.
At first, I didn't immediately see the connection between EPR and GS1 standards, but GS1 recently released a playbook to help companies report packaging data for compliance purposes.
There are a lot of layers involved. Imagine being able to pull standardized packaging data from all your suppliers—whether it's cartonboard, plastic film, or other materials—and have consistent information on weights, gauges, and material specifications.
GS1's initial focus has been on Oregon, Colorado, and California, but as the playbook was being developed, additional states such as Maryland and Minnesota enacted EPR legislation as well. I believe there are now seven states involved.
I didn't expect sustainability and EPR to be such prominent topics here, but they're everywhere.
Anything else stand out to you?
Liz Cuneo: I think you're right. It all ties back to regulation. The RFID and NFC applications we discussed are also connected to regulatory requirements because they help store and communicate the information that must accompany products. It's interesting to see how regulation influences so many different areas, including sustainability.
Matt Reynolds: Another topic I didn't expect to hear so much about was data governance.
Yesterday, someone from Ken's Foods discussed what he called the "silver tsunami." As experienced workers retire, companies risk losing a tremendous amount of tribal knowledge—information about machinery, packaging operations, supply chains, and processes.
The challenge is capturing that knowledge, standardizing the data, and retaining it within the organization even as employees retire. Craig Thornton from Ken's Foods highlighted this issue, and it reminded me of some of the discussions we've had on previous podcasts.
Liz Cuneo: It really comes down to better data management—having access to the right information and using tools like AI to organize it and extract what you need. There have been a lot of valuable discussions around that.
Matt Reynolds: Absolutely. And there's much more to come. It's only lunchtime on day one.
Later today I'll be hearing from Driscoll's, the berry company, which has some interesting supply chain initiatives we'll be reporting on. I attended a session from Mars this morning and will be covering that in more detail. We also have more EPR-related sessions ahead.
I'm also looking forward to hearing from Hanes about how they're combining 2D barcodes and RFID with Walmart to improve supply chain operations.
Finally, Michael Manley from Amazon will be presenting on Amazon Transparency, which uses 2D barcodes to combat counterfeiting and gray-market activity—something that has significant implications for healthcare as well.
Liz Cuneo: Absolutely. I'll also be hearing more from the FDA and GS1. I've already heard from Pfizer about some of the work they're doing with 2D barcodes at the hospital level.
There's definitely a lot more to come.
Matt Reynolds: There certainly is. Be sure to check out our next video coming soon.
