Fedrigoni Self-Adhesives, Henkel, and Herma have been named as the winners in this year’s FINAT Sustainability Competition, for their respective developments in adhesives that improve recycling and sustainability in the label industry.
Representatives from Henkel, Herma, and Fedrigoni with their FINAT Sustainability Awards 2026 trophies.
FINAT is a global association for the narrow web industry. Its Sustainability Awards is a biannual competition that recognises environmental and circularity innovations across the label value chain.
Fedrigoni won in the ‘Reduction of environmental impact’ category for SH6020-W Plus, which is an adhesive designed to allow the same label to perform in both reusable and single-use glass packaging applications, by combining secure adhesion during use with effective wash-off. This support bottle reuse without compromising glass recycling.
Henkel won in the ‘Renewable materials’ category for the development of Bio-EtAc as a bio-based ethyl acetate drop-in renewable solvent for acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesives. Bio-EtAc offers a renewable alternative to fossil-based ethyl acetate for acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesives.
Herma was picked as the winner of the ‘Optimisation of recycling’ category for the development of 72Hpw as a permanent pressure-sensitive adhesive that combines ‘reliable’ in-use performance with compatibility across PET, HDPE and glass recycling applications.
In announcing the winners in its Sustainability Awards 2026, FINAT said, “The three winners reflect complementary routes towards more sustainable packaging: enabling reuse without hindering recycling, designing adhesives to work with established recycling processes, and introducing renewable feedstocks without compromising functionality.”
34 entries were received for this year’s competition, with 12 finalists whittled down to the final three winners who were announced during the Sustainable Packaging Summit in Utrecht.
“Together with all 12 finalists, the entries underline the role of collaboration and proven, scalable solutions in advancing sustainability across the label value chain,” FINAT concluded.
