Sprekers

Hedwige Verherbrugghen holds a Master’s degree in Chemistry (Biochemistry) and a postgraduate qualification in Business Management and Communication. With over 25 years’ experience in food

Control and Support Officer at Verpact (formerly AfvalfondsVerpakkingen), responsible for assisting participants with their declarations and verifying those declarations. Has been with the organisation since

Inge Robbe began his career as an engineer specialising in efficiency in automation, particularly within injection moulding processes. He is currently an R&D Engineer at

Jan Berbee has many years of experience as an entrepreneur in the packaging industry. He was the owner of Dekker Packaging and worked at Antalis

Joan Hanegraaf is an entrepreneur and pioneer in circular business, the owner of OPACKGROUP, and has held numerous board positions in the horticulture and packaging

Joris Essing is Marketing Manager for Packaging at Tata Steel Netherlands. He leads the market launch of innovative steel packaging applications such as Protact® and

Karen van de Stadt is a strategic packaging expert at Verpact and is working on the transition to a circular packaging system. She brings together

Koen has extensive experience with private label manufacturers in Europe and has worked on various mergers and acquisitions. Since 2003, he has been a consultant

Lara Engelfriet works at the Ministry of Climate and Green Growth on the transition to circular materials, such as bio-based plastics. She coordinates various Dutch

Lisa van der Schans is a Regulatory & Sustainability Consultant at the Dutch Cosmetics Association (NCV). She specialises in European and national legislation relating to

Loe Limpens is the founder of Wow or Never and an expert in packaging design and retail branding. With a background in fashion and design,

Loek Boortman is a Senior Business Owner at GS1 and is responsible for activities relating to the management and sharing of packaging data. He supports

Lucie has a background in plastics technology, business and marketing. During her career, she has worked for major companies such as DSM, Evonik and Sekisui,

Marc Juwet is a professor at KU Leuven and is responsible for L-iTL’s R&D activities. Thanks to a team of passionate and creative engineers, L-iTL

At Empack 2026, Marieke Havermans will be a second-line specialist for Dokter Empack. Marieke Havermans is a Senior Business Developer for Circular Plastic Packaging at

My name is Menthe (30) and I live in Wageningen. For the past six years, I have been working as a consultant at DUPP Food

Michael Nieuwesteeg is the director of the NVC Packaging Centre. He has been the SAGE project lead at the association since 2024. His experience includes