WPO Awards - The ulimate Experience

Written by Bo Wallteg

Tuesday, 18 April 2006 00:00

For anyone who appreciates packaging, and especially packaging with extra finesse, it is of course the ultimate experience to be able to evaluate packaging solutions from all over the world during one day. At the same time, selecting a WorldStar winner is a task that rather quickly drains a judge’s brain. In nine hours, 294 packs were judged, and 149 of them were awarded WorldStars. The annual WorldStar competition is organised by the World Packaging Organisation (WPO), an association of business organisations and packaging institutes in 40 or so member nations. Winners in national packaging competitions enter the contest for WorldStar recognition; and this year 29 countries submitted entries. Two were especially satisfying, those from the two new members, Ghana and Zimbabwe. Herein is both the charm of the competition and also an inherent problem. Entries come from countries with such radically different circumstances that they’re impossible to compare. Each entry, therefore, has to be judged individually according to the specific conditions under which the contestant has been working. The WPO has been criticised for awarding prizes to too many contestants, and that some of the winners are not worthy of the prize. Normally, around 50 per cent of entries competitors are awarded a prize, as was the case this year. Considering that the winners all function in different environments, depending on where in the world they are situated, it is difficult to select fewer winners in a fair and equable manner. The jury consists of staff from various countries’ packaging organisations, and one representative from the International Packaging Press Organisation (IPPO). This year there where 23 votes to be won by the various contenders, and to receive a WorldStar, a majority of jury members had find the entries worth an award. A description of each entry is read out loud at the same time as it is shown on a screen. The jury is then asked to take various parameters into account when judging, for instance how attractive the packaging is in a sales context, if it is economical, if it is easy to open and reseal, how it affects the environment, and finally whether it is recyclable. The value of writing clear descriptions The jury’s work was often hindered by the difficulty of understanding an entry’s description. This is sometimes owing to a lack of understanding of the importance of a well-written motivation from the competing company, and sometimes owing to poor language skills. Some contestants seem to have simply looked up words in English dictionaries, and when the words are strung together the descriptions become difficult, if not impossible, to understand. Of course, it’s difficult for the jury to award a prize to a competitor whose packaging solution cannot be understood, even if there is an image and a text. Therefore future competitors are encouraged to focus on writing good, short and understandable descriptions as well as on submitting good images. The entries in the class Health & Beauty were especially difficult to understand, and there were relatively fewer winners in this class. Real surprises were missing The general impression from this year’s competition was the fact that there were no real surprises. Nothing touched the jury members and made them unanimously point out a winner. It can be concluded that many of the contestants focused on material, and therefore cost reduction. At the same time few contestants focused on packaging that is easy to open and reseal, an old problem that the packaging industry probably never will escape. Around the world there have been complaints that packaging cannot be opened in an efficient way, this has been a complaint ever since the modern supermarket set the standard for today's packaging. The interest within the industry to find better solutions is unfortunately low, and this became apparent at this year’s WorldStar awards. Instead, many competitors focused on advanced printing (even good examples of good printing on transport packaging were missing, something that is becoming more and more important since transport packaging often ends up in the shops today). Good printing on packaging was also rightfully awarded by the jury, but at the same time not much focus was put on graphic design. Good-looking entries Commenting on the good-looking entries from China cannot be avoided, proving that the packaging often is as important as its contents in many Asian countries. Often there are entries that are masterpieces of origami or advanced wooden packaging that appear handcrafted. Once again a problem for the jury becomes obvious. These kinds of solutions are impossible in the industrialised western world, while in Asia they are economical due to cheap labour, and this has to be taken into account when judging. It is worth noting that unexpectedly many entries seemed to focus on solutions for sending flowers by mail. It is also worth pointing out that the jury seemed to be against smoking. Not one of the often very attractive packages for tobacco from China was awarded a WorldStar. Is a potty a package? The oddest entry in the competition was probably the Potty Flip from Hungary, a disposable potty that can be folded together and carried, so when a child needs it, the potty can be unfolded! The main user group is small children who recently quit using nappies. A packaging solution that “offers nothing inside” as the manufacturer explains. In other words, the package is empty from the beginning. What is to be done with this package after it has been used, however, was not mentioned. It is perhaps questionable whether or not a potty is a package. The First WorldStar to Ghana It was enjoyable to see that Ghana was awarded its first World Star. Ghana is one of the countries where WPO worked actively in opening a packaging institute two years ago. WorldStars will be presented at a ceremony in Beijing on April 19, 2006. At the same time the winner of the President’s Award will be announced. The President’s Award is a special prize awarded by the president of WPO; and this year the jury nominated five entries from which he could choose. These are: Cool Cap, Georg Menshen, Germany (Beverages) Ergopac Pharma, Emballator Växjöplast, Sweden (Pharmaceutical & Medical) Ouro Fino Blue, Empressa de Aguas Ouro Fino, Brazil (Beverages) PowerPritt Multipurpose Gel, Henkel, Germany (Other) Steam Pack, Develpack, Italy (Foods) Images: WPO and Bo Wallteg.

Last Updated ( Saturday, 22 March 2008 20:32 )