Producer Day 2026

We’ll kick off the day with a clear view of the key sustainability, regulatory and supply chain developments shaping the industry. Get the context you need for the sessions ahead — and a head start on what to focus on next.

International retailers in the food- and non-food sector have a responsibility to assure legal compliance when it comes to their private label/white label assortment. They largely depend on their suppliers to provide them with the right information. What are their expectations when it comes to compliance looking ahead? What are their thoughts on the impact that AI will have on compliance? In a panel discussion, retailers will share their vision on the future of compliance: what do producers need to do to become ready for the future?

Schouten Food delivers its products to a wide range of retailers and out-of-home clients, all of whom have to comply with the same EU legislation. What are Schouten Food’s experiences when it comes to customer demands on compliance? How do they prepare for the PPWR, and what are their challenges? SyncForce works with Schouten Food and will present a real PPWR case from the producer’s perspective: what does reality look like, and what could be a solution that complies with different retail requirements while staying pragmatic?

The PPWR is an obligation that is affecting retailers, producers and their packaging suppliers. An administrative burden? Yes, but what about the other side of this legislation? Can working on the circularity of packaging material also become a business model? For both the retailer AND the producers? Jumbo has a packaging team that will share insights into the experience they have built up over the last year, looking at the topic from the perspective of both a retailer AND producers.

Auditing is a common tool used by retailers and producers when it comes to topics like food safety and human rights. Can auditing also play a role when it comes to PPWR? More buyers want to understand how, and if, their suppliers have implemented an effective PPWR management system. Can the PPWR data that they deliver be trusted in a structural way? To solve this challenge the IFS has successfully developed the IFS PPWR check. How does this check work and how can results be used for retailers and producers?

Collecting packaging data for PPWR compliance is only the starting point. The same data can help companies calculate — and potentially reduce — their Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees. But calculating recyclability and score isn’t that easy at scale. On top of that, EPR schemes, reporting requirements and fee structures differ from country to country, making this a complex and time-consuming task. Packaging Cockpit will show how they turn packaging data collected through ImpactBuying into country-specific EPR calculations and actionable insights. What does this look like in practice, and how can you make PPWR compliance financially valuable?

AI will radically reduce the cost of collecting, interpreting and validating PPWR data. But as asking becomes easier, trusted supplier data and human attention become more valuable. What happens when every company can automate thousands of data requests? Where will AI truly transform compliance, where will human judgement and relationships remain essential, and how do we move towards a model where verified data is asked once and used many times?

With the Forced Labor regulation coming into force, the focus on Human Rights and the challenge of setting priorities become relevant again. Where to start? What data can you trust? ImpactBuying has selected the WUR’s risk methodology as the basis for its risk ranking method. How does this methodology work, and what is the benefit for retailers and producers as the new Forced Labor regulation comes into force?

From 27 September 2026, the EU’s anti-greenwashing rules will change the way companies communicate about sustainability. Generic claims such as “eco-friendly”, “green” and “climate neutral through offsetting” will face new restrictions — across packaging, webshops, advertising and social media. Which claims can you still make, what evidence do you need, and how can you assess and manage claim risks across your supplier base? Join this session for a practical approach to staying compliant while keeping your sustainability communication credible.

Retailers and producers are measuring product-level emissions at scale — but everyone does it slightly differently. Different methods, assumptions and data sources produce numbers that cannot be compared, and suppliers who answer the same question five times over. It costs time and delivers no actual reduction. The Global Sustainable Transition Alliance (GSTA), led by WRAP and Wageningen University & Research, is building a globally aligned, technology-agnostic standard for product footprints, consistent with SBTi, the GHG Protocol, PACT and ISO. Where does PCF harmonisation stand today? What does this mean for your Scope 3 reporting? How to start collecting data now without having to start over later?

Bring together the key takeaways from the day and get your last questions answered. What should you act on now, what can wait, and how do you turn today’s insights into practical next steps? Join the discussion, share your questions and leave with a clear view of what comes next.