On Tuesday 14 April, 29 nominated female professionals from the packaging industry received the good news during the appointment of ‘Packaging Woman of the Year 2026’. Kim Stemkens, Packaging Sustainability Manager at Jumbo Supermarkets, has been announced as Packaging Woman 2026. She will therefore serve as a source of inspiration for the entire sector throughout the coming year. She will be supported in this role by NVC Packaging Centre and Empack Nederland, in line with the SAGE movement.

This first-ever appointment is both a milestone and a powerful statement: female professionalism in packaging is indispensable for a sustainable, innovative and inclusive packaging sector. Inclusivity is one of the six pillars of the SAGE (Sustainably AGEing) movement, which strives for a society that grows sustainably.

First-ever edition of ‘Packaging Woman of the Year’ in the Netherlands

Empack Nederland and NVC Packaging Centre have jointly laid the foundations for this very first edition of Verpakkingsvrouw Nederland. A total of 29 female professionals were ultimately nominated, either by putting themselves forward or by being put forward by others. In total, over a hundred people (women, men, professionals, acquaintances) were involved in the entire nomination process. The result: a ‘line-up’ of female professionals in a positive, collaborative setting. ‘Women who work every day on innovative solutions and making the complex supply chain more sustainable, ranging from materials and machinery right through to packaging design,’ explains Susanne den Otter, Head of Events at Empack. Susanne den Otter, together with NVC Director Michael Nieuwesteeg, forms the co-secretariat of the initiative.

On the first day of the Empack trade fair (14 April 2026), the nominees, the organisers, the Nomination Committee and an engaged audience gathered around the Pitch-Pack-Plein at Next Level. Michaël Nieuwesteeg and Susanne den Otter explained to the audience the reasoning behind the initiative and the importance of a sustainable society and SAGE. In doing so, they emphasised two key principles once again.

Packaging Woman Netherlands is not a competition in which one person ‘wins’. On the contrary, it is a way of encouraging collegiality and collaboration based on inclusivity.

Secondly, the award is not the end point, but rather the beginning of the whole process. Wherever and whenever the Packaging Woman so wishes, she will be supported over the coming year by Empack and NVC, and hopefully also by the other nominees and the sector as a whole.

The nomination process

The Packaging Woman Netherlands Nomination Committee comprises Nienke Peters (former Associate Director of Global Packaging Technology & Support at MSD, now based in the United States), Cornelien Baijens (CCO at Easyfairs) and Kim Bertens-Vlems (International Senior Packaging Manager for Taste Elevation & Foodservice at The Kraft Heinz Company). The new Packaging Woman is warmly invited to take part in the next edition.

Six factors are relevant to the appointment. Four of these were assessed by the joint secretariat (including at least one year’s work experience in packaging and holding Dutch nationality or being employed by a company based in the Netherlands). Two factors were assessed in depth by the Appointments Committee: the quality of the nomination and the suitability of the candidate herself. Each of these two factors had already been broken down in advance into a number of sub-questions to be answered. With regard to the quality of the nomination, for example, the breadth of support was examined. For instance: is the candidate supported in her nomination outside her own organisation?
The candidate’s suitability for the ‘role’ of Packaging Woman was also assessed through a series of questions. Does the candidate still have potential for development? Can she inspire others in her role? In short: can others see her as a positive influence on their own further development?

In her official announcement speech, Kim Bertens-Vlems, chair of the Appointments Committee (and also chair of the NVC Packaging Centre), summed it up perfectly: ‘Is the Dutch Packaging Woman of the Year 2026 the winner compared to the other nominees? No, she is not. On the opposite, together they form an inspiring group of female professionals who are committed to working with and for one another towards a world in which we can all be, or become, proud of packaging. A world in which respect, innovation and inclusivity set the trend.’