When Print Turns to Corrugated: Why FESPA Is Launching a Dedicated Corrugated Event

📅 19–22 May 2026

📍 Barcelona, Spain – Fira de Barcelona, Hall 3

In 2026, within the framework of the FESPA Global Print Expo, a new specialised platform will debut: Corrugated.

For an organisation founded in 1962 as a federation of European screen-printing associations, this is more than just a programme extension. It is a strategic move.

Corruga.Expert spoke with Duncan MacOwan, Head of Marketing & Events at FESPA, and Nick Kirby, FESPA Corrugated Ambassador and Non-Executive Director at Zeus Packaging, to understand what pushed a historic print exhibition toward corrugated converting.

Corruga.Expert:

FESPA has always been associated with print, signage, and visual communications. What made you decide that corrugated deserved its own dedicated event?

Duncan MacOwan:

If you look at how print has evolved over the past decade, packaging has become central to the conversation. Many of our long-standing exhibitors — Canon, HP, efi, Kongsberg— are increasingly active in corrugated applications.

We began to see a clear shift. Corrugated was no longer just transport packaging. It was becoming a high-value communication medium — for retail, for POS, for brand storytelling.

At the same time, small and medium converters were asking questions. How do we integrate digital? How do we move into shorter runs? How do we offer decorative and graphical packaging without completely restructuring our plants?

Corrugated 2026 is our answer to that shift. It is not simply another zone on the show floor. It is a focused space for converters who want to strengthen their technological capabilities and compete in higher-value segments.

Corruga.Expert:

We are seeing pulp and paper exhibitions — such as Latampaper — launching corrugated-focused events as well. But they approach it from the paper production side. FESPA is entering from the print side. How is your perspective different?

Nick Kirby:

The difference is fundamental.

Paper-focused exhibitions approach corrugated through fibre, raw materials, and mill operations. That is essential — but it is upstream.

FESPA approaches corrugated through value creation.

Our ecosystem is about print quality, finishing precision, automation, workflow, and increasingly AI-driven optimisation. When you see companies like Bobst as overall sponsor, alongside Canon and Kongsberg, it sends a clear message: this is about converting, decoration, and performance.

We are not talking about tonnes. We are talking about margin.

Brands today demand shorter runs, customisation, sustainability, and visual impact. Those demands sit exactly at the intersection of print and corrugated. That intersection is where Corrugated 2026 lives.

Corruga.Expert:

Why now? Why is 2026 the right moment?

Duncan MacOwan:

Because the industry is ready.

Digital print for corrugated is no longer experimental. Automation is no longer optional. Software and ERP integration are becoming decisive competitive factors. Even cybersecurity is now part of the conversation for modern box plants.

We are also co-locating Corrugated with other FESPA events — including European Sign Expo, Personalisation Experience, WrapFest, and a new Textile showcase — giving converters access to a broader international audience and cross-industry ideas.

The corrugated industry has reached a level of technological maturity where it deserves its own specialised platform within our global event structure.

Nick Kirby:

And there is another dimension.

Converters are under pressure — from legislation, from sustainability requirements, from rising costs, from brand owners demanding more sophistication. They need practical solutions, not theory.

Corrugated 2026 will combine exhibition space with a conference theatre directly on the show floor. Discussions will range from EU packaging legislation and AI opportunities to automation and the role of trade associations.

It is designed to be practical. To be operational. To be relevant.

That is why we describe it as “The Place for Experts.”

A Strategic Shift, Not a Trend

Corrugated 2026 will occupy 1,500 m² in Hall 3 at Fira de Barcelona. But the physical size is not the real story.

The real story is this: a 60-year-old print institution recognising that the future of value in packaging lies at the intersection of high-quality graphics, advanced converting, digital integration, and sustainable materials.

The question is no longer whether print belongs in corrugated.

The question is whether corrugated converters are ready to move further into print-driven value creation.