Ian Bates is a sustainable packaging specialist and fibre-based innovation strategist with more than 30 years' experience across the European paper, cartonboard and corrugated packaging sectors. He advises organisations across the value chain around market intelligence, commercial strategy and the transition from plastic to high-performance fibre solutions. Ian has held senior leadership roles with DS Smith and Smurfit Westrock and has founded and scaled multiple packaging ventures focused on waste reduction and material efficiency. He is widely recognised for his ability to connect technical innovation with commercial opportunity, helping brands, converters and manufacturers deliver practical, scalable fibre-based solutions. Ian is one of the community at NOA, supporting the market intelligence, industry analysis and strategic insight team, focussed on the global fibre packaging sector with a particular focus on plastic to fibre transition. Ian also undertakes work with other leading industry partners including EMGE, Colombier and Two Sides, supporting innovation pipelines, regulatory readiness and market positioning within an evolving European policy landscape. His expertise spans cartonboard, containerboard and moulded fibre technologies, circular design, supply chain optimisation and packaging regulation, including PPWR, EPR and EUDR.