Westpak Group’s GrabLok wins Innovation Gallery 2026 at Packaging Innovations & Empack
GrabLok™, a linerless tamper-evident closure for food delivery bags, was named winner of the Innovation Gallery 2026 at Packaging Innovations & Empack, held on 11-12 February at the NEC Birmingham. The accolade is decided by visitor vote, with attendees scanning a QR code at a dedicated feature wall to cast their choice from ten expert-selected finalists.
What is GrabLok?
Supplied as a linerless label on a perforated roll, GrabLok eliminates backing paper waste and applies in a single step to bags of any size. The closure provides clear tamper evidence — a persistent requirement in foodservice delivery, where maintaining order integrity from preparation through to the end consumer is both a food safety and commercial concern. The label can be branded or flood coated to a Pantone colour, and is designed to operate at the speed demanded by high-volume quick service restaurant (QSR) environments.
Paul Magee, Sales Director at Westpak Group, commented: “Since the rapid growth seen during Covid-19, packaging really never developed fast enough to keep up with the rise in home delivery food. GrabLok solves that. It’s linerless, tamper-evident, keeps food clean and safe, and it’s faster to operate in store.”
Magee noted strong commercial interest following the show, citing enquiries from QSR chains and international distributors.
Runner-up: compostable liquid sachet
Second place went to a fully compostable liquid sachet developed collaboratively by Futamura UK, Repaq, and GK Sondermaschinenbau. The sachet is based on Futamura’s NatureFlex™ cellulose film and holds certification for compostability in both industrial and home settings — addressing end-of-life limitations inherent in the conventional multi-layer plastic sachet structures that are widely used across the food industry but remain difficult to recycle.
A strong shortlist across material science and circular design
The wider shortlist reflected a broad range of technical approaches to packaging functionality and sustainability. Entries included Huhtamaki and Xampla’s plastic-free Morro™ coating for folded cartonboard, Prevented Ocean Plastic™’s food-safe recycled polypropylene, and PilloPak’s glue-free Microflute LockWell tray.
Sema Tezel Basbug, Head of Marketing – UK Packaging Portfolio at Easyfairs, said: “We asked visitors which innovation best represented the future of packaging, but the truth is that all ten finalists do exactly that in their own way.”
The judging panel noted both the technical depth and commercial readiness of submissions – criteria of particular relevance to food scientists and technologists evaluating packaging solutions for scale-up and regulatory compliance.
- Packaging Innovations & Empack returns on 24-25 February 2027 at the NEC Birmingham.
- For more information about GrabLock, visit: www.westpakgroup.com
