The third annual PKN Women in Packaging Awards, which took place on 25 June in Melbourne, was an inspiring evening that celebrated the cohort of 2026: a group of incredible women making a major contribution through their work across the packaging value chain.
A highlight of the evening, as part of the awards programme, Frauke Tyrrell, CEO of NCI Packaging, was inducted into the PKN Women in Packaging Hall of Fame.
The 2026 PKN Women in Packaging winners are:
Communications & Marketing Excellence
Recognising a woman who has demonstrated exceptional skills and achievements in communications and/or marketing within the Australasian packaging industry. This award acknowledges outstanding efforts in promoting packaging products, brands, and sustainability initiatives.
Julia Casey, PackServ
Julia Casey led a strategic communications campaign aimed at reshaping perceptions around locally manufactured packaging machinery in Australia. Responding to growing reliance on lower-cost imported equipment, the initiative reframed purchasing decisions around operational risk, downtime, serviceability, and long-term value rather than upfront price alone.
Through customer-led storytelling, video content, and data-driven messaging, Julia highlighted the hidden costs associated with imported machinery. The campaign positioned Packserv’s locally manufactured and supported solutions as a practical and reliable alternative, backed by Australian technicians and flexible purchase models, and readily available parts.
Design & Branding Excellence
Acknowledging a woman whose creative prowess has reshaped packaging design and branding. This category recognises excellence in creating visually appealing, impactful packaging that resonates with consumers and boosts brand identity.
Gwen Blake, Boxer Brands
Gwen Blake is the founding director of Boxer Brands, where she guides packaging and brand transformations for some of Australia’s best-known FMCG businesses. A recent example is Boxer Brands’ work on the Woolworths Christmas range, where Gwen directed the evolution of an established design system to improve cohesion, scalability, and shopability.
Through Boxer Brands’ proprietary “Boxology” methodology, Gwen ensures design decisions are grounded in consumer behaviour and commercial outcomes. Her work consistently delivers clearer shelf navigation, stronger brand recall, and scalable systems that support long-term brand growth across complex portfolios.
Manufacturing Leader
Recognising a woman who has demonstrated outstanding leadership and excellence in an Australasian packaging manufacturing operation, from optimising production processes, to improving quality control, enhancing efficiency, and fostering a culture of innovation and safety.
Sarah Coleman, J&P Flexographics
Sarah Coleman played a central role in implementing the FSSC 22000 food safety and quality management system across J&P Flexographics, embedding stronger quality control, traceability, and operational discipline throughout the manufacturing business. Working across departments, Sarah aligned procedures, training, records, and shopfloor practices with the international standard while maintaining production performance and customer service requirements.
A major focus was building a stronger root cause analysis culture, encouraging teams to move beyond short-term fixes and implement corrective actions that reduce recurring issues and strengthen continuous improvement. Her leadership contributed to first-time quality performance exceeding 99 per cent, alongside reductions in rework, waste, and process variation.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD:
Helen Tutton, Amcor
PKN wanted to acknowledge outstanding leadership in advancing mental wellbeing and psychosocial safety in the workplace. While there isn’t a specific category for this in our program, and it fell under the broader ambit of Manufacturing, PKN recognises this as something of increasing importance in our industry, and the work by this individual deserves recognition.
Through practical action, education and cultural change, Helen Tutton's work has helped embed mental health into everyday health and safety practices, reinforcing the principle that mental health deserves the same attention and care as physical safety.
Packaging Technology Leader
Recognising a woman who has demonstrated exceptional expertise and contributions as a packaging technologist in the Australasian context, including developing, driving and implementing advanced packaging technologies, processes, and solutions that have had a significant impact on the Australasian packaging industry.
Michaela Cooke, Ego Pharmaceuticals
Michaela Cooke led the technical packaging transformation of Ego Pharmaceuticals’ Elucent skincare range, creating a recycle-ready portfolio designed to improve sustainability, manufacturing efficiency, and product protection without compromising the brand’s premium clinical positioning.
Her work included transitioning bottles and closures to 100 per cent polypropylene mono-material structures, introducing recyclable mono-material pumps and pipette droppers, integrating post-consumer recycled content into selected packs, and removing metallic foiling in favour of more recyclable premium finishes. Beyond sustainability outcomes, she implemented packaging innovations that improved operational performance and product stability.
Rising Star
Celebrating an emerging female talent who is making her mark in the Australasian packaging industry. This award recognises a woman early in her career who has shown outstanding potential, leadership, and dedication to professional growth.
Tahlia Graetz, Orora Glass
Tahlia Graetz has made a significant early impact at Orora Glass through technical leadership, operational problem-solving, and strong people-focused management across one of Australia’s most complex glass manufacturing operations. After joining the company in 2021 through Orora’s engineering cadetship program, Tahlia rotated through multiple departments while completing her mechanical engineering degree, developing broad operational expertise.
A standout achievement was her role in the commissioning of Orora’s first Oxyfuel unit supporting the G3 oxyfuel furnace, where she became one of the first trained operators and later helped train shift technicians to support safe and reliable operation. The furnace has since delivered major sustainability gains.
STEM Explorer
Recognising the outstanding achievements of a woman who demonstrate excellence in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics within the packaging industry.
Lauren Wood, Opal
Lauren Wood has demonstrated significant STEM leadership through her work at Opal, where she has combined environmental science, chemistry, and manufacturing expertise to drive enterprise-wide sustainability transformation. A key achievement has been her leadership of Opal’s first enterprise-wide Environmental Management System, developed to integrate real-time environmental data, compliance tracking, and risk modelling across multiple manufacturing sites. Beyond compliance, the system has enabled more proactive, data-driven environmental management and operational decision-making across the business.
Lauren also led the development of Opal’s first Water Sustainability Strategy and strengthened sustainability reporting frameworks, improving transparency and accountability across the organisation’s environmental and social performance metrics. Her work has contributed to a nine-point year-on-year improvement in Opal’s EcoVadis sustainability rating.
Beyond operational outcomes, Lauren has played an important industry leadership role as president of APPITA, where she advocates for STEM capability, knowledge sharing, and diversity within the pulp, paper, and packaging sectors.
Sustainability Leader
Honouring a woman who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to sustainability through initiatives such as reducing packaging waste, promoting recyclability, advocating for eco-friendly materials, or implementing circular packaging practices.
Jasmine Medwell, Woolworths Group
Jasmine Medwell has led several major circular economy and packaging sustainability initiatives across Woolworths Group. A key focus has been expanding soft plastics collection infrastructure, with collection points now operating across more than 650 stores nationally.
She has also supported the rebuilding of recycling pathways through partnerships with recyclers including IQRenew and SaveBOARD. Under her leadership, Woolworths expanded container deposit scheme kiosks and introduced a new 2030 packaging target of achieving an average of 30 per cent recycled content across own-brand plastic packaging. Her work supports stronger recovery systems and recycled-content market demand nationally.
Congratulations to all winners and finalists. See you all in 2027!
