On December 19, 2016, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Commerce issued the “Guiding Opinions on Accelerating the Transformation and Development of China’s Packaging Industry” (hereinafter referred to as the “Opinions”) in Document No. [2016]397 issued by the MIIT Joint Consumption Department. This document not only represents a strategic plan for the packaging industry but also serves as a guiding framework for action within the sector. How can we deeply grasp the spirit and rich implications of the “Opinions” and thereby promote supply-side reform and enhance the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of China’s packaging industry? Recently, the two ministries released interpretations of the “Opinions.”

　　Q: What were the main considerations behind the issuance of these “Opinions” by the two ministries?

　　Answer: The packaging industry is a service-oriented manufacturing sector closely linked to national economic development and people’s livelihoods, playing a pivotal role in both the nation’s economic and social development. In recent years, driven by China’s rapid economic growth, China’s consumer market has continued to expand, significantly boosting demand for packaging products and propelling the packaging industry to rapid development and remarkable achievements. However, this rapid growth has also accumulated numerous challenges, such as severe overcapacity, high resource consumption and energy intensity, imbalanced regional development, weak independent innovation capabilities, and insufficient core competitiveness. These pressing issues that hinder the industry’s sustainable development must be addressed through transformative development. The issuance of the “Opinions” is primarily guided by three key considerations: First, to implement the spirit of the state’s supply-side structural reform and the “three reductions, one cut, and one supplement” initiative within the packaging sector. Second, to actively support the “Made in China 2025” major strategic initiative through transformative development. Third, to adopt a problem-oriented approach and tackle the issue of being large but not strong. From the perspective of building a “powerhouse in packaging,” the “Opinions” provide scientific planning and guidance to promote the healthy development of the packaging industry.

　　Q: The “Opinions” represent the first systematic guiding document issued by our government in the history of the packaging industry. In what key aspects does their significance lie?

　　Answer: To put it in a single sentence, the “Opinions” hold tremendous practical significance and far-reaching historical implications for achieving higher-quality, more efficient, and more sustainable development of the packaging industry. Specifically: First, the “Opinions” clearly define the guiding principles, basic tenets, and technical pathways for the industry’s transformation and development—from overall requirements and key tasks to supporting measures—thereby solidifying and enhancing the packaging industry’s position in national economic and social development. Second, for the first time, the “Opinions” explicitly position the packaging industry as a “service-oriented manufacturing sector,” thereby establishing its role within China’s manufacturing system and addressing longstanding issues such as ambiguity about the industry’s nature and the resulting lack of clear direction caused by inaccurate positioning. Third, the “Opinions” identify “promoting a shift in production methods, optimizing the supply structure, resolving excess capacity, and fostering new growth drivers” as the key priorities for the packaging industry’s transformation and upgrading, thus creating a top-level systemic design for building core competitiveness.

　　Q: The “Opinions” are systematically designed and comprehensively guided around the key word of transformation and development. What is the chosen path?

　　Answer: Transformation and upgrading represent an urgent need and inevitable choice for the packaging industry during this critical period of climbing uphill and overcoming obstacles. The “Opinions” put forward specific requirements and clear guidelines in areas such as aligning with the “Three Products” special action for the consumer goods industry, implementing the national circular development initiative, and promoting the implementation of an innovation-driven development strategy. The path selection can be summarized using the “1-2-3-4” framework:

　　A main focus: In line with the industrial positioning of service-oriented manufacturing and in response to the requirements of supply-side structural reform, we will place particular emphasis on effectively addressing the most prominent challenges, key technologies, and application bottlenecks that constrain the development of the packaging industry, thereby comprehensively promoting the industry’s transformation, upgrading, and efficiency enhancement.

　　Two objectives: First, to build an industrial technology innovation system centered on green packaging, safe packaging, smart packaging, and standardized packaging. Second, to establish a green production system covering the entire lifecycle of packaging, focusing on clean production and green development.

　　Three transformations: shifting the packaging industry from passive adaptation to proactive service, from resource-driven to innovation-driven, and from traditional production to green production.

　　Four areas for enhancement: First, the standardization and green development level of the industry; second, the industry’s level of intelligent manufacturing; third, the industry’s capacity for independent innovation; and fourth, the industry’s international competitiveness.

　　The overarching approach and strategic thinking of “1234” are highly systematic, goal-oriented, and forward-looking. They fundamentally establish the guiding principles and primary objectives for industrial transformation and development, clearly outlining a definite direction and key priorities for upgrading and transformation, and addressing the questions of why we need to transform and where we should transform.

　　Q: Grounded in the “three transformations,” the Opinions have set forth specific targets in six key areas within the development goals. What are the primary issues that these indicators aim to address in the packaging industry?

　　Answer: The “Opinions” set forth indicators in six areas, which include both qualitative and quantitative measures—meaning they not only define the direction but also specify clear targets. Among these, the “industrial scale” target focuses on ensuring that the industry maintains medium-to-high-speed growth while enhancing its capacity for agglomeration development and brand cultivation. The “independent innovation” target emphasizes increasing R&D investment to boost the ability to achieve independent breakthroughs in key technologies and enhance international competitiveness. The “integration of informatization and industrialization” target aims to meet the requirements of “Internet Plus,” thereby raising the industry’s level of informationization, automation, and intelligence. The “energy conservation and emission reduction” target seeks to break away from the packaging industry’s high consumption and energy intensity, establishing and developing a green production system. The “military-civilian integration” target is designed to lead the concentration of core capabilities in military-civilian integrated packaging technologies, thereby improving the protective packaging support capabilities needed to carry out diversified military missions. Finally, the “standard-setting” target focuses on optimizing the industry’s standard system, using packaging standardization to drive the standardization of logistics and supply chains, and enhancing both the management level of standards and their alignment with international benchmarks.

　　Q: The “Opinions” identify seven major tasks for industrial development. Can these seven tasks effectively address and fill the key shortcomings currently hindering the development of the packaging industry?

　　Answer: It should be said that the task-setting in the “Opinions” is highly specific and targeted, addressing the urgent need to build a “powerhouse in packaging” and focusing on the most pressing issues facing the packaging industry. Specifically:

　　Task 1: Implement the “Three-Product” Strategy to Leverage Industrial Development Advantages. This task addresses key challenges facing China’s packaging industry, including a lack of clear advantages in leading products, an urgent need for rapid improvement in overall product quality, and weak international influence and discourse power of domestic brands. The goal is to effectively tackle three core issues: adapting to diverse market demands, strengthening quality assurance, and fostering internationally recognized brands.

　　Task 2: Strengthen technological innovation and enhance core competitiveness. This task addresses critical issues such as the severe underinvestment in major technological innovations within the industry, a lack of capabilities in original innovation, integrated innovation, and the ability to introduce, digest, absorb, and re-innovate; the difficulty in achieving significant breakthroughs in high-tech fields; and the heavy reliance on imports for advanced equipment and key technologies. The goal is to effectively enhance independent innovation capacity and core competitiveness by building an innovation ecosystem, breaking through key technologies, and strengthening demonstration applications.

　　Task 3: Promote the integration of industrialization and informatization to enhance the level of intelligent manufacturing. Addressing the pressing need to improve the automation, informatization, and intelligence levels of manufacturing processes, as well as the limited capacity of internet-based technologies to drive industrial transformation and corporate innovation, this task aims to build platforms such as packaging e-commerce, industrial cloud, and big data analytics. By doing so, it seeks to popularize advanced manufacturing models that integrate collaborative manufacturing, virtual manufacturing, and networked manufacturing, and vigorously develop new production service models, smart factories, intelligent equipment, and smart products.

　　Task 4: Strengthen standard development and promote international benchmarking management. Addressing prominent issues such as incomplete standard systems, conflicting standards, outdated standard levels, and weak operability, this task aims to refine the packaging standard system and improve mechanisms for standard promotion and application. By driving logistics supply chain standardization through packaging standardization, we seek to enhance the adoption and conversion rates of international standards.

　　Task 5: Optimize the industrial structure and foster a coordinated development pattern. This task addresses issues such as uncoordinated regional industrial development, an underdeveloped support system for the growth of small, medium, and micro enterprises, prominent duplication of facilities among manufacturers of low-end, homogeneous products, and severe overcapacity. The goal is to optimize market allocation and adjust the industrial landscape by guiding capacity transfers, promoting cluster development, and encouraging overseas expansion.

　　Task 6: Foster new business models and expand the scope for industrial development. Addressing issues such as weak awareness of collaborative development between upstream and downstream industries and among different links in the industrial chain, limited cross-sector integration capabilities, and a weak foundation for military-civilian integration, this task aims to broaden industrial sectors, extend industrial chains, enhance cross-sector integration capabilities, and elevate the level of coordinated development.

　　Task 7: Promote green production and build a circular development system. Addressing the widespread issue of an extensive production model characterized by high investment, high consumption, and high emissions—where green production methods and systems have yet to be effectively established and environmental friendliness remains inadequate—the goal is to fully construct a new industrial landscape that features resource conservation, environmental friendliness, circular utilization, and sustainable development by championing green principles, developing green materials, promoting green technologies, and strengthening green assessment, thereby achieving a green transformation of the packaging industry.

　　Q: Faced with the seven major tasks, how should packaging companies effectively promote their implementation?

　　Answer: Packaging enterprises are both the primary entities responsible for implementing the “Opinions” and the key beneficiaries of these Opinions. Therefore, they must recognize emerging trends, clearly define their positioning, and take meaningful action by effectively promoting the implementation of the Opinions through “three key alignments.”

　　First, align with the three major development directions. The “Opinions” fully implement the development philosophy of “innovation, coordination, green development, openness, and shared benefits,” clearly identifying green packaging, safe packaging, smart packaging, and standardized packaging as the key areas for the development of the packaging industry. This not only represents a comprehensive upgrade of the positioning outlined in the “12th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development”—which called for “accelerating the development of advanced packaging equipment, new packaging materials, and high-end packaging products”—but also constitutes a strategic choice aimed at serving the country’s major national strategies, promoting global integration of the industry, and responding to the shared aspirations of the people. The packaging industry and enterprises must adapt to these new requirements, cultivate new drivers of growth, build on their existing strengths, and make new contributions within this new framework.

　　Second, align with the five major development areas. The “Opinions” outline development roadmaps for three major product categories—packaging materials, packaging products, and packaging equipment—as well as five sub-sectors: paper packaging, plastic packaging, metal packaging, glass packaging, and bamboo-wood packaging. These roadmaps identify key priorities—including product upgrades, technological innovation, strategic breakthroughs, and brand cultivation—from several critical angles. In particular, in line with the “Three Products” special campaign for the consumer goods industry, the document sets forth clear requirements and provides specific guidance on how each sub-sector of the packaging industry can expand its product variety, enhance product quality, and cultivate strong product brands. Moreover, based on the longstanding technological shortcomings in the packaging industry and the latest global trends in cutting-edge technologies, the document identifies key areas for breakthroughs in core technologies across various fields. Through the implementation of the “Packaging Industry Innovation Capability Enhancement Plan,” it has formulated a technology roadmap for transformative development. Packaging enterprises must, according to their own positions within the industrial chain, proactively strengthen their transformation mindset, earnestly implement transformation requirements, follow the established transformation path, and enhance their transformation capabilities.

　　Third, align with the six major development initiatives. The “Opinions” propose that during the 13th Five-Year Plan period, we should fully implement the “Green Packaging Materials Initiative,” the “Food and Drug Packaging Safety Initiative,” the “High-End Packaging Products Initiative,” the “Digitalization of Packaging Printing Initiative,” the “Informationization of the Packaging Industry Initiative,” and the “Intelligentization of Packaging Equipment Initiative.” Special emphasis is placed on promoting demonstration applications of advanced technologies and significant breakthroughs. These six initiatives serve as crucial cornerstones for ensuring a comprehensive enhancement of industrial development capabilities and levels, and also act as vital platforms for effectively implementing the various government industrial support policies outlined in the “Opinions.” Packaging enterprises must become active participants, diligent practitioners, and driving forces behind these six initiatives, taking the initiative, innovating boldly, and setting exemplary standards throughout the implementation process.

　　Q: Currently, the popularity of online shopping has led to a huge increase in express delivery packaging. Does the “Opinion” introduce any new requirements for express delivery packaging?

　　Answer: The “Opinions” set forth universally applicable requirements for the transformation and development of the packaging industry, and express delivery packaging is no exception. For instance, the “Opinions” explicitly call for promoting standard packaging modules (600×400 mm), establishing a reverse logistics system for packaging waste, implementing the extended producer responsibility system, and adopting simplified, reduced-volume, reusable, and refined packaging design technologies. All these measures will place new demands on express delivery packaging, guiding it toward standardized, information-based, green, and circular, shared development.

　　Q: E-commerce is a brand-new service model that has rapidly developed in the internet era. How can packaging companies adapt to the e-commerce model and create new growth opportunities?

　　Answer: Although the overall level of informatization in the packaging industry is not yet very high, in recent years, e-commerce packaging has been developing at a rapid pace. To adapt to the e-commerce model and expand their growth prospects, packaging companies should focus on two key areas: First, they must vigorously develop packaging production service models that are data-driven, networked and collaborative, personalized, service-oriented, crowd-sourced in design, and cloud-based—leveraging the internet to foster an industrial operating approach that dynamically responds to consumer demand. Second, they should harness modern information and networking technologies to restructure their relationships with users and the market, seamlessly connect upstream and downstream industries with end-market demands, and make the transition from traditional packaging manufacturers to comprehensive packaging solution providers—and from production-oriented manufacturing to service-oriented manufacturing.

　　Q: The recycling of packaging materials is closely linked to people’s livelihoods and the environment, yet this issue has long remained unresolved. What new measures does the “Opinion” propose to promote the recycling of packaging materials?

　　Answer: The issue of recycling packaging materials has long remained unresolved effectively, primarily due to two key factors: first, unclear responsibility for recycling; and second, a lack of mandatory enforcement measures. We note that the “Opinions” address this issue by proposing solutions in three main areas: First, vigorously promote waste reduction and eco-design, supporting the use of green packaging materials that feature high product quality, low resource and energy consumption, minimal impact on human health and the environment, and ease of recycling. Special emphasis will be placed on developing and popularizing technologies for the automated identification, sorting, and deinking of waste paper (as well as metals, plastics, and other materials) to facilitate the circular utilization of packaging waste. Second, encourage designers, manufacturers, and users to proactively embrace the concept of green development throughout the entire lifecycle of packaging—from raw material sourcing and production to waste collection and disposal—conducting comprehensive environmental assessments of packaging products across all stages of their lifecycle in terms of resource consumption, energy use, and emissions, and prioritizing the implementation of extended producer responsibility systems for suitable product categories. Third, study and formulate policies to promote the recycling and reuse of packaging waste, leveraging existing renewable resource recycling systems and employing modern information technologies such as the Internet, big data, and cloud computing to optimize the recycling and utilization chain for packaging waste. These three major initiatives—covering design requirements, material selection, technological R&D, assessment methods, extended producer responsibility, and policy frameworks—constitute a “comprehensive package” aimed at addressing the challenge of packaging waste recycling and are expected to yield positive results.

　　Q: Among the safeguard measures outlined in the “Opinions,” which ones are most worth paying attention to?

　　Answer: There are primarily two key aspects: First, we need to advance the development of green packaging systems and regulations centered on “energy conservation, emission reduction, and environmental friendliness,” formulate a “Clean Production Evaluation Index System for the Packaging Industry,” conduct systematic assessments of the clean production levels of packaging enterprises, and promote green assessment and certification systems for packaging. Second, we must intensify policy support for enterprises that have obtained green packaging certification, innovative enterprises, and those engaged in the R&D of low-cost, low-energy-consumption, and near-zero-emission packaging technologies and equipment. We should also strengthen support for core technologies and the promotion of branded products, thereby enhancing the recycling rate of packaging materials. Why is this worth paying attention to? Because these two measures—both in terms of institutional development and policy tools—clearly provide robust safeguards and support for achieving a green transformation of the packaging industry. They represent an organic combination of rigid measures and flexible approaches, serving as both mandatory constraints and effective incentives for the packaging industry, sector, and enterprises themselves.