This is an excerpt from the session "Meet the Press: CPG Perspective on Packaging Trends" that Packaging Digest directed at Pack Expo 2010.

PD: When it comes to packaging innovation, what help do you need from suppliers? New ideas? A long-term partnership?

Perfecto Perales, director, packaging R&D, Kraft Foods: One of the things we're looking for is transparency and an open, candid relationship. That's new to Kraft as a company and new to the industry. Start with that when you come in.

Rich Hollander, vp, packaging services, Pfizer: I would ask suppliers to stop coming to us with solutions if they haven't first asked us what our needs are. [murmurs]

Denise Lefebvre, director, packaging innovation, PepsiCo: That's totally fair. I echo your point exactly, Rich. We get a lot of suppliers come in with ideas that aren't anywhere near the consumers' mark. They don't really ask.

We're looking for suppliers that want to partner with us for the long term, that bring open innovation and new ideas to the table, that act like they want to win and that they work as part of the PepsiCo family. We want to open that up in a significant way and look at different business models and different ways of doing things that could be collaborative and a win for both of us.

Michael Okoroafor, vp packaging, H.J. Heinz: We've created strategic packaging needs and grouped them in platforms and we share them with the close suppliers. This is all about thought leadership. We have to come to you with something that you can really think through and come back with a good proposition. That's how we approach it with new and potential suppliers. 

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