PRESS RELEASE
Frastanz / St. Ruprecht / Budapest / Düsseldorf, May 13, 2026
Rondo shines on the international stage
The packaging specialist receives five WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026
The winners of this year’s WorldStar Packaging Awards were announced at the beginning of the year – and on May 8, 2026, the time had finally come: The trophies were presented at a gala ceremony during the interpack international trade fair in Düsseldorf. Among the delighted winners were five teams from three Rondo sites.
The WorldStar Packaging Award is considered the most prestigious international prize in the packaging industry and is often referred to as the “Oscars of Packaging.” With these awards, the World Packaging Organisation honors innovative packaging concepts from around the world each year, setting an international standard for excellence in design, functionality, and sustainability. The winners included four packaging concepts developed by three Rondo Ganahl AG development teams in the Transport, Point of Sale, Luxury Goods, and Alcoholic Beverages categories. A particular highlight was one Rondo innovation that earned two awards.
Rondo’s five WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026 once again underscore the Group’s outstanding development expertise across multiple sites and countries. “These awards confirm our commitment to developing tailored, sustainable and market-oriented packaging solutions of the highest international standard. Five awards for innovations from Frastanz, St. Ruprecht and Budapest are a powerful indication of the performance and dedication of our teams at all our sites,” says Hubert Marte, Chairman of the Board of Rondo Ganahl AG, expressing his delight with these multiple successes.
Strong partnerships, award-winning results
For the packaging specialist’s customers, too, the awards are a welcome endorsement of many years of successful collaboration – and this was duly celebrated at the gala. Clemens Leiter (Head of Technology & Production at WATERCryst) accepted the trophy in the Transport category together with the packaging developers from Rondo Frastanz: “We have relied on Rondo’s sustainable concepts for the packaging of our equipment and systems for many years. We are delighted that the newly developed mono-material packaging for our Biocat KS-C limescale protection devices has now won the WorldStar Packaging Award 2026, following its success at the Wellpappe Austria Award 2025.”
Sabine and Herbert Bauer (Bauers Bitter) are equally delighted with the award: “We wanted packaging that would protect our product perfectly while highlighting its artisanal character – our herbal distillates are lovingly handcrafted and have already won several awards. The WorldStar Packaging Award 2026 for our five-bottle assortment box confirms that Rondo in St. Ruprecht was exactly the right partner for this project.”
The teams at Rondo Budapest and Weingut Kreinbacher had twice the reason to celebrate, with the packaging concept for champagne bottles winning over the judges in two categories (Luxury Goods and Alcoholic Beverages). “Winning two such prestigious awards for our sparkling wine packaging is a special honor for us. These two awards confirm that we are on the right path toward sustainability – not only in viticulture, but throughout our entire production process. Together with the Rondo team, we have succeeded in developing a solution that combines design, functionality, and environmental awareness, while meeting our ambition to combine sustainability with sophisticated design,” says Judit Bor (Marketing Manager at Weingut Kreinbacher). She adds: “The understated style and elegance of the champagne packaging, based on an eco-friendly packaging material made from recycled paper, have been very well received by our customers. We are already looking forward to developing further packaging solutions together with Rondo.”
Award-winning projects at a glance
Biocat KS-C – heavy-duty packaging
Winner in the transport category | Frastanz site (Austria)
The Biocat KS-C packaging impressed the jury with its consistently sophisticated design for global shipping. Rigid wedges reliably secure the device at the top and bottom, while an MC honeycomb panel means it can be flexibly adjusted to three different lengths. A hinged side panel facilitates the easy assembly and perpendicular removal of the device.
Two separate accessory boxes ensure secure storage, protecting the delicate cover of the limescale protection device. Optimized dimensions enable it to be accurately and robustly positioned on Euro pallets. The packaging consists entirely of a single material and combines durability, efficiency and sustainability in a shipping solution that can be used around the world.
Bauers Bitter – selection box
Winner in the point of sale category | St. Ruprecht site (Austria)
The five-bottle selection box for Bauers Bitter is both aesthetically appealing and highly functional. Designed to resemble a handcrafted wooden chest, it features brown corrugated board and a minimalist stamped look, highlighting the product’s artisanal nature and enhancing its presence on the shelf.
The packaging consists of three interlocking parts and is produced entirely without adhesive. Each bottle is securely positioned, meaning that the box can be used for retail and gift packaging, as well as sturdy transport packaging. After removing the inlay, the box can also be reused as a storage or keepsake chest – an added benefit for clients.
Transport tray for mirror motors
Winner in the transport category | St. Ruprecht site (Austria)
The newly developed transport tray for mirror motors fully replaces the previous polystyrene solution and is made entirely of corrugated board. It has been specifically designed for automated use: the motors are inserted using robots, which is why maximum precision and stability are required to continue using the existing automation infrastructure.
A key feature is its exceptionally high torsional rigidity. Triangular struts – inspired by bridge-building principles – enable maximum load-bearing capacity with minimum use of materials. Up to 40 trays can be stacked on top of each other, with the bottom tray supporting loads of up to 400 kg.
High-quality champagne packaging for Kreinbacher
Winner in the Luxury Goods and Alcoholic Beverages categories | Budapest site (Hungary)
The six-bottle champagne box for the premium producer Kreinbacher has earned awards in two categories. Made from five layers of corrugated board, it combines excellent load-bearing capacity, integrated inlays without separate inserts and an extraordinary fusion of form, function and design.
The simple brown base material provides the foundation for a high-quality graphic concept. The shiny silver print, produced using flexographic methods and special water-based ink, appears to be green, blue or grey depending on the angle. The graphic elements – snowdrops and Order of the Wine Knights – refer to Hungary’s Somló wine region and emphasize the brand identity. The packaging meets both transport and presentation requirements, is fully recyclable and extremely efficient along the entire value chain. Continuous reordering by the client, interest from other market players and, last but not least, the two WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026 confirm the success of this solution.
About the World Packaging Organisation
The World Packaging Organisation (WPO) is a non-profit, international association serving the packaging industry. The WPO supports projects and initiatives aligned with its mission: “Better quality of life, through better packaging, for more people.” In this spirit, the WPO promotes the advancement of packaging technology, science, and engineering, as well as international trade. www.worldpackaging.org and www.worldstar.org
About Rondo
Rondo Ganahl AG, headquartered in Frastanz (Vorarlberg, Austria), specializes in the production of custom outer packaging made from corrugated board, tailor-made moulded pulp inner packaging, and corrugated case material, as well as waste paper recycling. This modern, family-owned industrial company has roots that date back to 1797. Rondo currently employs over 1,800 people across multiple locations in Austria (Vorarlberg, Styria, and Tyrol) and Romania (Apahida/Cluj, Târgoviște, and Sibiu), and at one plant each in Germany and Hungary. The company promotes the responsible use of resources and has established a closed recycling loop within the corporate group.
Caption 1: Teams from three Rondo sites celebrate a total of five WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026.
Caption 2: Four tailored packaging concepts developed by teams from three Rondo sites received a total of five WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026..
Caption 3: The tailored transport packaging for BIOCAT has been designed by Rondo Frastanz for global shipping and earned the WorldStar Packaging Award 2026 in the transport category. Fotocredit: © com_unit/APA/L. Schedl
Caption 4: Functional and aesthetic – the five-bottle selection box from Rondo St. Ruprecht has won the WorldStar Packaging Award 2026 in the point of sale category. Fotocredit: © com_unit/APA/L. Schedl
Caption 5: A transport tray for mirror motors from Rondo St. Ruprecht that replaces the previous polystyrene solution – winner of the WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026 in the transport category. Fotocredit: © com_unit/APA/L. Schedl
Caption 6: Two WorldStar Packaging Awards 2026 for a high-quality packaging concept: the champagne packaging from Rondo Budapest impressed the jury in two categories, luxury goods and alcoholic beverages.
