Packaging Costs Under Siege: How Right-Sizing Beats the Middle East Crisis
- Freddie Bolton
- 7 hours ago
- 2 min read
The ongoing conflict in the Middle East and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz have sent packaging material costs soaring. Brent crude has jumped from around $73 to over $100 per barrel, pushing up prices for plastics, corrugated board, and transportation. For shippers, e-commerce companies, and manufacturers, the pressure on margins is intense. Yet unlike many other areas of operations, transit packaging offers practical and immediate ways to fight back.
The Plastic and Void-Fill Challenge
Plastic void-fill products such as bubble wrap and polystyrene foam are among the hardest hit. Tied directly to oil and gas prices, their costs are rising fast while supply reliability from the Gulf region is under threat.
“Our plastic suppliers in China have raised prices by roughly 15% recently, and they’ve pointed to higher raw material costs and general market uncertainty as the reason,” said Stanislav Krykun, CEO of DST-Pack, in a CNBC interview in March 2026.
The traditional practice of grabbing an oversized box and filling the empty space with expensive plastic is becoming financially and environmentally unsustainable.
Right-Sizing Delivers Multi-Front Savings
Automated right-size packaging technology offers a powerful solution. By creating a box that perfectly fits the contents, companies can eliminate most void-fill, dramatically reduce board usage, and lower overall packaging costs.
“By using the right size box, businesses can combat waste and expense on three fronts: eliminate plastics, use less board, and save on transport,” explains Chris More, UK Sales Director at Packsize.
Many users report board cost savings of up to 29% and total packaging material reductions of 35% or more. These benefits are especially valuable in e-commerce, where smaller, more frequent orders make packaging a larger share of total cost. New regulations — the UK’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme and the EU’s Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulations (effective August 2026) — add further incentive to reduce material use.
Transport and Broader Supply Chain Impact
Right-sized packages are denser, allowing more units per pallet, truck, or container. This reduces the number of shipments, cuts fuel consumption, and lowers volumetric weight charges from carriers.
The sense of constant disruption is widely felt across the industry. “These black swan events keep coming at us... We just don't have time to prepare,” said Jason Wong, founder and CEO of Paking Duck, in Supply Chain Dive in April 2026.
A Strategic Opportunity Amid Uncertainty
Adopting right-sizing is not only a short-term cost-saving measure. It also reduces plastic waste, lowers CO₂ emissions from transport, and improves sustainability performance. In a market where both consumers and regulators demand greener practices, operational efficiency becomes a genuine competitive advantage.
The Middle East crisis has exposed the fragility of global supply chains once again. At the same time, it has highlighted a clear and achievable path for companies to regain control over packaging costs. Those who embrace precise, on-demand packaging solutions today will be far better positioned to navigate volatility and strengthen their resilience in 2026 and beyond.