1. 73rd FEFPEB congress in Bastad (Sweden) outstanding
Addressing his last FEFPEB congress after 13 years as President, Rob van Hoesel said: “FEFPEB is a federation of country members, individual companies, pallet pools and association members, representing the European pallet industry, lightweight packaging and industrial packaging.
“We always strive for a common approach and succeeded in establishing a recognised position as the representative federation for our whole industry. That is a continuous process.”
Duplicating lobbying efforts at the expense of clarity of messaging and representation “is potentially the worse-case scenario for our industry”, he said, adding that having different organisations with similar aims in Brussels was “a waste of time and labour” that risks communicating “two different messages, which would be damaging for our industry.”
He concluded by calling for unity and a coordinated pooling of resources. “We have a beautiful, sustainable product that is worth fighting for,” he said. “I call on everyone here to set aside your personal ambitions and keep our industry united.”
Held over three days in the town of Båstad, Sweden, FEFPEB’s 73rd congress was themed The Wood Packaging Industry in a Resilient Europe, welcomed approximately 200 delegates from the European and international wood pallet and packaging sector.
Other speakers at the congress included:
- Viveka Beckeman, CEO of Swedish Forest Industries, who spoke about the size, value, and position of the Swedish forestry industry;
- Leading geopolitical analyst Björn Fägersten, who gave the congress a presentation on external developments that could impact the wood pallet and packaging sector in the coming months;
- Nikhil M Varghese, Circular Economy Director at DGA Group, with a presentation about the latest FEFPEB advocacy on the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) and status of the new rules, which became applicable on August 12 this year;
- Christina Lundgren of Svenska PEFC and Jan Ihre of Forest Stewardship Council Sweden, discussing forestry certification schemes with moderator Mathias Fridholm, Senior Advisor at Svenskt Trä (Swedish Wood);
- Christian Nielsen, market expert at Svenskt Trä and Swedish Forest Industries, with an outlook for the availability of timber in key global markets; and
- FEFPEB Secretary General Fons Ceelaert with an update on FEFPEB’s future strategy, working groups, lobbying activities and more.
The congress programme also featured a welcome reception and dinner at Hotel Skansen, Båstad, and a fascinating day learning about the Swedish pallet and packaging industry, including the production facilities of Asljunga Pallen AB and Södra, and to a commercial forest. Here, delegates were given an informative tour and insights into the workings of the forest industry, including tree species that can absorb even greater volumes of carbon, the wide range of naturally sustainable consumer products that can be produced from forests, and modern forest management practices. It concluded with a dinner at the historic 14-hectare Norrviken gardens estate overlooking the Kattegat Sea.
Secretary General Ceelaert said: “This is the 73rd time that delegates have met for a FEFPEB congress and thanks to our collaboration with Swedish Wood it was one of the best attended, informative, and enjoyable programmes we have run.
“The challenges our industry is facing are becoming more complex and international in nature, and together we achieve far more by working together, speaking with one clear voice and making the best possible use of our collective expertise and resources. Since it was founded in 1946, FEFPEB’s mission has been to bring our sector together, share ideas, and represent our common interests consistently wherever decisions affecting our future are being made.”