{"id":295004,"date":"2026-08-28T14:34:28","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T12:34:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/kim-stemkens-appointed-dutch-packaging-woman-of-the-year-2026-at-empack\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T14:34:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T12:34:31","slug":"kim-stemkens-appointed-dutch-packaging-woman-of-the-year-2026-at-empack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/kim-stemkens-appointed-dutch-packaging-woman-of-the-year-2026-at-empack\/","title":{"rendered":"Kim Stemkens appointed \u2018Dutch Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 at Empack"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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On Tuesday 14 April, 29 nominated female professionals from the packaging industry received the good news during the appointment of \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019. 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.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

First-ever edition of \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year\u2019 in the Netherlands<\/strong><\/p>\n

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 \u2018line-up\u2019 of female professionals in a positive, collaborative setting. \u2018Women 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,\u2019 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.<\/p>\n

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. Micha\u00ebl 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.<\/p>\n

Packaging Woman Netherlands is not a competition in which one person \u2018wins\u2019. On the contrary, it is a way of encouraging collegiality and collaboration based on inclusivity.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

The nomination process<\/strong><\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Six factors are relevant to the appointment. Four of these were assessed by the joint secretariat (including at least one year\u2019s 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\u2019s suitability for the \u2018role\u2019 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?<\/p>\n

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: \u2018Is 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.\u2019<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Kim Stemkens: Netherlands’ Packaging Woman of the Year 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kim Stemkens (Jumbo Supermarkets) will therefore be able to call herself the Netherlands\u2019 Packaging Woman of the Year 2026 from 14 April 2026. She has been working as Packaging Sustainability Manager at Jumbo Supermarkets since March 2023. In this role, she focuses on making the packaging of Jumbo\u2019s own-brand products more sustainable. She ensures that the correct data is available, closely monitors developments relating to the PPWR and translates these into Jumbo\u2019s packaging policy and objectives.<\/p>\n

With over 13 years\u2019 experience in the packaging industry, including working for Danone, Mars, Kraft Heinz and Ahrend, she continues to develop her skills. From the moment of her appointment, Kim Stemkens will receive a full year\u2019s support from the NVC Packaging Centre and Empack Nederland \u2013 and hopefully from everyone in the sector \u2013 in pursuing her goals, both in terms of her own professional development and her contribution to the development of the sector as a whole.<\/p>\n

Who will be named \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2027\u2019 in the Netherlands?<\/p>\n

Empack and the NVC Packaging Centre look back with pride on the ceremony held during Empack 2026 and would like to thank everyone for their nominations and for attending the ceremony. Special thanks also go to all the nominees and their \u2018supporters\u2019 for their dedication to the industry.<\/p>\n

At the same time, the organisers are looking ahead. Female professionals can already be nominated for the 2027 edition via the Empack website. Women can be nominated by others, but may also put themselves forward. The first nominations have already been received!<\/p>\n

Who will you nominate? Nominate her via the Empack website<\/a> and provide a clear explanation of why she, in particular, should be named \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2027\u2019.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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On Tuesday 14 April, 29 nominated female professionals from the packaging industry received the good news during the appointment of \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019. 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 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1510,"featured_media":292646,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Kim Stemkens appointed \u2018Dutch Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 at Empack","_seopress_titles_desc":"On Tuesday 14 April, 29 nominated female professionals from the packaging industry received the good news during the announcement of the \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 award. Kim Stemkens, Packaging Sustainability Manager at Jumbo Supermarkets, has been appointed Packaging Woman of the Year 2026.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"Kim Stemkens appointed \u2018Dutch Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 at Empack","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"On Tuesday 14 April, 29 nominated female professionals from the packaging industry received the good news during the announcement of the \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 award. Kim Stemkens, Packaging Sustainability Manager at Jumbo Supermarkets, has been appointed Packaging Woman of the Year 2026.","_seopress_social_fb_img":"https:\/\/easyfairsassets.com\/sites\/379\/2026\/04\/4-2.png","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"Kim Stemkens appointed \u2018Dutch Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 at Empack","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"On Tuesday 14 April, 29 nominated female professionals from the packaging industry received the good news during the announcement of the \u2018Packaging Woman of the Year 2026\u2019 award. Kim Stemkens, Packaging Sustainability Manager at Jumbo Supermarkets, has been appointed Packaging Woman of the Year 2026.","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"https:\/\/easyfairsassets.com\/sites\/379\/2026\/04\/4-2.png","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"both","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":301,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[295],"tags":[1003,1004,1006,1007],"edition":[],"class_list":["post-295004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-show-news","tag-empack-2026","tag-evenementenhal-gorinchem","tag-nvc-packaging-centre","tag-sage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1510"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=295004"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295004\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":295005,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295004\/revisions\/295005"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/292646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=295004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=295004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=295004"},{"taxonomy":"edition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.empack.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/edition?post=295004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}