As 2025 marks the 20th year since the United Nations’ Kyoto Protocol—a drive to commit countries to ending the climate crisis and reducing greenhouse gas emissions—was put into effect, Hong Kong has once again been put into the international spotlight in its efforts at sustainability.
A glimpse of such momentum was on full display at the 20th Hong Kong International Printing & Packaging Fair (PrintPack) held on 27-30 April 2025, Asia’s premier fair held by the Trade Development Council for printing and packaging technologies.
The fair included Hong Kong industries rallying behind sustainable transformation efforts, rows of biodegradable material products, energy-efficient production designs, and zero-waste goals. Displaying the city’s ambition to redefine the manufacturing sector, in a city where waste is still the core of the issue.
The push is far from symbolic. Hong Kong, with initiatives like the Sustainable Development Fund, holds fairs as such to test whether the metropolis of 7.5 million could reconcile its wall of skyscrapers with an attempt at sustainable living.
Drawing around 500 exhibitors, 11,000 visitors from 100 countries and regions, and 155,000 online buyers according to organiser numbers, the event emerged as a critical platform for advancing green innovation to the international masses in pivoting towards sustainable manufacturing on approaching materials, waste and circularity.
Chris Chan, a sales manager at Elements Branding Solutions, says that his company, with a speciality in sustainable packaging products such as garments, boxes or paper bags, uses such material to align with the relevant market demands which drive production.
“Customers worldwide are increasingly seeking sustainable solutions, and Hong Kong acts as the hub to attract international customers,” Chan added. “The fair would most definitely benefit further if exhibitors showcase more eco-friendly packaging innovations like ours, for customers to explore.”
Chan’s observations reflect a broader shift in consumer behaviours, one that innovators from Hong Kong are willing and eager to meet.
As if to support such an ideal, the exhibitor at the next aisle, EzyGreenpak, has a ground-breaking innovative material, being a “water-soluble non-woven fabric that dissolves in 90-degree hot water without leaving harmful residues or microplastics like PP, PE, PS, or PVC.”
Founder of EzyGreenpak, Wendy Lam, stated that third-party labs confirmed the material completely biodegrades within 2 years under landfill conditions, asserting their claim of redefining sustainability via radical material science.
“With this material, eco-bags, garment bags, and other potential sustainable packaging products could lead the growing market trend,” Lam continued. “Companies are increasingly open to adopting new materials and packaging innovations, and this supports the corporation’s shift in mindset towards sustainability.”
The fabric might just epitomise the urgency in rethinking materials while the world drowns in plastic, amplified by the urgency in Hong Kong’s environmental dissonance when skyscrapers and landfills coexist under the shadow of unmet climate deadlines.
In light of recent environmental legislation and a pledge by the Hong Kong government to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, the Hong Kong Air Quality Health Index increases year by year, with increasingly drastic weather formations and disasters. One could hardly argue against their effects and impacts, far from a resolution, far from recovery.
Yet, Hong Kong appeared to have stepped into its leadership role, leveraging influence in pioneering environmental events as a global financial powerhouse, despite incoming waste management struggles amidst a sustainability narrative.
Lam expects such materials from Hong Kong to attract Southeast Asian and European markets, in particular, in consideration of the problems surrounding US tariffs amidst their withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
Ellie Hodesdon, a Creative Director of East End Press, attending as a buyer from the United Kingdom, stated that she remains optimistic about new sustainable materials to replace traditional methods.
“Hong Kong provides an excellent platform to access sustainable manufacturers and potential partners,” says Hodesdon. “In Europe, buyers prefer sustainable options, and I’ve noticed some exhibitors here use bamboo as a material, which seems intriguing to me.”
Similarly, Michelle Gay, CEO of UK demi-fine jewellery company Goldtrip, goes as far as to say that “sustainability and eco-friendliness are no longer a trend, but an expectation and as customers expect packaging to be recycled, recyclable, and ideally reusable,” whilst identifying 30 potential suppliers for sourcing materials, expecting an order of USD 20,000 annually.
The demand for sustainability is not limited to Europe. Attendees from Southeast Asia and the Middle East, in particular, have been faced with environmental impacts of their own and echo similar priorities. PrintPack appears to have been the perfect platform for exhibitors to display new and upcoming sustainable products, which some buyers have exclaimed.
“It’s been more diverse than I expected. Initially, we were focused on finding corn starch-based materials, but I’ve discovered there are many more sustainable options available,” says Wenhui Huang, a sales manager from Taiwan.
Jessica Wardna, a company director from Indonesia, believes that Hong Kong’s PrintPack represents a growing trend in degradable materials in Asia, which is relatively new to her as such materials are “not yet common in my country.”
Wardna further describes the fair as “eye-opening” and the insight as “invaluable” as her company further considers aligning with global sustainability trends.
Exhibitor Eric Tsang, a marketing manager with Best Planner Development Limited, believes that the incorporation of sustainability with other market trends is what drives innovation.
“While sustainability remains a major challenge, with the support of AI, we anticipate even more creative designs when we see clients bring differing concepts to us,” Tsang added.
The road ahead is steep. Plastic waste fills landfills, and legislators in Hong Kong could hardly agree on a single environmental development without facing backlash. Yet, providing an event ground for such environmental purposes was still able to be interpreted as a push forward in the eco-friendly standard.
Amen Abdulla, a general manager from the UAE, stated that plastic will be completely prohibited by 2026 in their market, which has driven “strong interest” in sustainable solutions in Hong Kong.
“I was delighted to see a wide range of innovative, eco-friendly products at the fair,” Abdulla further expands, mentioning attending 20 meetings and exchanging contacts with 50 suppliers at the event. “There has been significant progress in this area, with many recyclable and sustainable options on display made from bamboo and sugarcane, which are particularly impressive.”
The world watches, with Hong Kong’s journey from a legacy commercial titan to that of a greener future for cities also racing against time. PrintPack, once denominated by the glossy laminated and plastic-centric designs, now hum alongside the conversations of the carbon-neutral efforts, underscoring Hong Kong’s historical efforts at addressing environmental issues on a governmental and societal stance amid years of policy shifts since 1997.
Ricky Fung, exhibitor and general manager from MPP Packaging Asia Limited, also believes that the sustainability effort has a long way to go, stating, “While most materials we source are at least 50% eco-friendly, we want to drive the trend forward as the industry is still lagging behind in this area.”
Another exhibitor, who wishes to remain anonymous against any exhibiting retaliation, also stated that the fair has seen less and less overseas attention over time, particularly from the American and European continents, even as the fair draws closer to advertising sustainability.
Despite all the optimism, Hong Kong’s path to sustainability remains fraught with contradictions. As some exhibitors and attendees also chime in unison, progress remains incremental in an industry still tethered to old habits. The road ahead is steep, but for now, Hong Kong remains writing its next green chapter—one plastic tableware at a time.