Why Residual Solvent Testing is Becoming Essential for Sustainable Packaging

Published September 2026.

European packaging manufacturers have had an influx of new materials to work with, largely focused on meeting both internal and external sustainability goals. With these renewable/plant-based packaging materials, like seaweed, mushroom, and compostables, new approaches to traditional manufacturing and testing processes are needed for an industry that is still relying on increasingly out-of-step methods. Sustainable packaging’s market share will only grow as EU regulations are set to tighten, meaning futureproofing the production line is best done now to pre-empt competitors’ inevitable redesigns.

Part of this futureproofing involves a psychological shift among manufacturers; solvent testing, often viewed as part of end-of-run quality control, should become a separate priority reliant on thorough testing rather than odour checks and single-sample assessments. Due to its more exacting standards, sustainable packaging has a different ruleset: one that can punish stubborn manufacturers financially and operationally.

New materials will absorb volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at different rates, potentially contaminating the packaging and its product and rendering it unusable. Although there are traditional methods for detecting and removing VOCs, these aren’t optimised for the unique behaviours of sustainable materials, creating a much higher margin of error. For sectors such as food and pharmaceuticals, this contamination risk simply isn’t acceptable.

In flexible packaging specifically, the move from multilayer laminates and foils to recyclable mono-materials, often now containing recycled material themselves, presents a difficulty in continuing to use incumbent testing protocols. Historically, one sample had been tested at the end of a production run, in a controlled off-site environment. In the case of solvent testing, odour checks are still common, relying on variable human scent detection that often misses unsafe VOC levels in sustainable materials.

Although these have been cost-efficient and practical testing methods up until now, sustainable packaging demands a more thorough approach, one that combines safety with line speed. Part of the solution, and part of the culture shift required, is to move solvent testing to the shop floor and have it become a central element of the production line. This way, machinery across the manufacturing process can be immediately and intuitively optimised for a safe new generation of sustainable packaging production.

Such a drastic shift from the current standard will require adaptability and initial investment. The transition to on-floor testing and leaving odour checks behind might be intimidating, especially after decades of relying on other processes, but it’s crucial in ensuring that sustainable packaging meets today’s exacting legislative requirements. High VOC levels can render packaging unsafe and unusable, creating waste, operational downtime and the risk of brands looking elsewhere for supply chain partners. All this aside from the economic cost.

One way of making this vital transition smoother is by investing in up-to-date testing equipment suited for proactive, repeatable solvent testing. RDM Test’s Neptune 803 gas chromatograph is one option. Made by N.I.R.A., it enables solvent testing to integrate into the assembly line by testing for VOCs in as little as seven minutes, without leaving the factory floor for analysis. With that real-time data, manufacturers can fine-tune other steps in the process and secure their product performance without losing efficiency.

The EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) came into effect from 12 August, and its international implications have sparked this latest wave of brands and converters switching to more sustainable packaging designs. Consumers are also increasingly paying attention to what their packaging is made of and how it affects the world around them. Of course, the effect of VOCs, although less known to the general public, presents a danger to the packaging industry at every level.

Solvent testing doesn’t just deserve to be in its own category of testing: it must be. If sustainable packaging is going to be safely manufactured at scale, testing for VOCs must become a central element of the manufacturing process.