When it comes to the great awards in the packaging industry, the WorldStar Awards are certainly one of the first to come to mind. Since 1970, these renowned awards have been conferred each year by the World Packaging Organization. The award owes its relevance to the numerous international participations, but also to the extension of its categories to include current trends. In 2023, the award ceremony will take place as part of interpack.

It is the declared goal of the WPO and the WorldStar Award to increase awareness of the importance of packaging in daily life. The award also creates a platform for and thus heightened awareness of the efforts and innovations of the companies in the packaging sector.

Award-winning cosmetics packaging by the Edelmann Group in the category Digital Packaging.
(Image: Edelmann Group

However, the award is not only open to large brands and design foundries. Everyone who has a solution may apply, if they have already received a national or regional prize that is recognised by the WPO. The spectrum of competitors therefore can be very broad and run the gamut of different sectors. And the categories of the WorldStar Awards are just as varied. From food and beverage packaging to electronics to medical and pharmaceutical products, very different sectors of the industry are covered.

A finger on the pulse

Concerning categories especially, WorldStar stays ahead of the times and keeps an eye out for current developments and trends. For example, the WorldStar Awards 2023 boast two wholly new added fields: Digital Packaging and Gift Packaging. Accessible Packaging has joined the special categories.

Stora Enso scored at the WorldStar Awards with a box for the transport and display of cut flowers.
(Image: Stora Enso)

In the special award categories, the prize goes to packaging entered into the main categories. Among the categories are “Sustainability”, “Marketing” and “Packaging that Saves Food”. Unlike the main categories, the winners in these categories are not known before the award ceremony, but are first announced live during the festive presentation.

„As always, our goal is to further innovation in packaging across different sectors and to prove that good packaging can be a substantial solution for many current problems, especially concerning sustainability, food waste and the extension of the shelf life of food and agricultural produce. Therefore, we urge all companies all over the world to use this global chance to improve their packaging by competing with the best of the best packaging solutions on a global level."

Soha Atallah, WorldStar Coordinator and WPO Vice President for events

International character

The international relevance of WorldStar is reflected both in the participants and the international character of the jury. The jury consists of members of the WPO board, which currently has members in more than 60 countries. For the 2023 award, there was a total of 488 entries from 41 countries. From these, the jury selected 228 winners in the different categories.

A notable number of entries, 27, came from the Arab region. Strongly present, too, were entries from Japan, Australia and New Zealand. In November 2022, the jury met for the assessment phase, and at interpack in May in Düsseldorf, the sought-after trophies will be awarded live during a festive presentation.

Stora Enso, for example, can look forward to an award in the category Transit. Their transport and display box for cut flowers scored with its ease of use and visually appealing design. In the new category Digital Packaging, the Edelmann Group received an award. Their PopArt packaging for cosmetic products with a sustainable packaging concept and digital enhancement convinced the jury.

Industry innovations in the spotlight

A finger on the pulse

International character

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