189 - Freedom Packaging's newest President, Tom Hauerstein joins Adam

People of Packaging · 18 Apr 2023 · 29m

What this episode covers

Tom Hauerstein, who spent 20 years building the Labels and Packaging division at S1 Labels and LexJet, explains his move to become President of Freedom Packaging to take on a new challenge. He contrasts S1’s digital, short-run model with Freedom’s high-volume flexible packaging for private label retail, discussing the economic barriers to compostable materials and the shift toward pure polyethylene structures. Hauerstein details how food inflation is driving demand for house brands and frozen goods, while noting that extended producer responsibility (EPR) reporting is just beginning to trickle into private label requests.

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