2026 U.S. Packaging Brand Owners Study

Foodservice companies are investing in packaging innovation, specifically in substrates that enable them to reach goals related to sustainability and food safety, while both consumer packaged goods (CPG) and foodservice brand owners are optimizing stock-keeping units (SKUs) in order to minimize supply chain complexity, more effectively align with demand and manage their costs.

Brand owners are already using a wide range of digital tools and artificial intelligence (AI) use cases across the packaging value chain, and they plan to significantly increase their usage over the next three years as they view the impact of these technologies to be overwhelmingly positive.

Sustainability has been — and, at least for the next three years, will continue to be — a top consideration for foodservice companies when it comes to choosing, and choosing to change, their packaging. Both consumer packaged goods (CPG) and foodservice brand owners have been prioritizing sustainability in their packaging since 2022, and around 72% of brand owners surveyed expect to achieve all of their related goals by 2030.

The packaging supply chain has faced significant disruption since 2021, prompting many brands to reevaluate their supply chains and consider potential actions to increase supply chain resiliency.