Europe’s new push for EU defence readiness 2030 is reshaping how weapons, components and critical materials are funded, regulated and moved across borders.
Yet one element that runs through every part of the defence supply chain – how equipment and hazardous materials are classified, labelled and packaged – barely appears in the public debate.
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The European Commission’s Defence Readiness Omnibus package, backed by a detailed staff working document published in November 2025, aims to cut red tape and unlock up to EUR 800 billion in extra defence spending by 2030 through simplified procurement, faster permits, changes to chemicals rules and easier access to finance.
For companies supplying packaging, labels and materials used to ship ammunition, fuels, batteries, electronics and chemicals, these changes could redefine both risk and opportunity over the next decade.
For a global packaging industry that already supplies dual-use products into aerospace, chemicals and logistics, understanding how defence readiness 2030 and the defence readiness omnibus interact with EU chemicals legislation, transport rules and investment frameworks is becoming a strategic necessity rather than a niche concern.
Chemicals legislation and the defence packaging challenge
At the heart of the Omnibus package is a proposed set of “well-targeted changes” to EU chemicals legislation, including REACH, the Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Regulation and, critically for packaging, the Regulation on Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) of substances and mixtures.
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By GlobalDataThe staff working document notes that chemicals are “a vital and necessary component in most defence systems” and that many of the substances used are subject to authorisation or restriction.
It also stresses that current implementation of EU chemicals rules “does not always support the objective of defence readiness by 2030”, leading to delays, uncertainty and higher compliance costs across the defence supply chain.
The Commission therefore proposes to clarify existing defence exemptions in REACH, CLP and the Biocidal Products Regulation. Member States would still decide whether to use these exemptions, but the rules would be clearer and easier to apply.
For packaging professionals, this matters in several ways:
- Classification and labelling: any change in how hazardous substances are classified feeds directly through to label content, pictograms and safety information on drums, IBCs, cartridges and outer packaging for defence goods;
- Packaging performance and design: packaging for ammunition, fuels, propellants, energetic materials and specialty chemicals must meet strict performance standards while complying with CLP and transport regulations;
- Sourcing and substitution: where hazardous substances are restricted, packaging adhesives, coatings, barrier layers and inks may need reformulation, with knock-on effects on shelf life and robustness in extreme climates.
In parallel, EU governments have been working on a separate “Omnibus VI” package to simplify CLP and related rules on the classification, labelling and packaging of chemical products, while postponing some new requirements to 2028 and aiming to cut administrative burdens.
For packaging suppliers into both civil and defence markets, the combination of defence readiness 2030, the defence readiness omnibus and Omnibus VI suggests a complex transition period.
Rules on classification, labelling and packaging will continue to evolve, but with more explicit room for defence-specific exemptions and a stronger emphasis on speed and legal certainty.
Defence supply chains, logistics and safe transport
The Omnibus package also targets long-standing bottlenecks in defence procurement and intra-EU transfers of defence-related products.
The Commission wants to streamline procedures under the Defence Procurement Directive and the Intra-EU Transfers Directive, and to strengthen the use of general transfer licences so that routine movements of standard defence items no longer require case-by-case approvals.
The staff working document points to examples where permits and construction approvals for defence facilities have taken years, immobilising capital and slowing industrial ramp-up.
Stakeholders reported that regulatory complexity is a major obstacle to expanding or maintaining defence industrial capacity, and to ensuring the timely availability of essential materials and inputs.
For the global packaging industry, several implications stand out:
- Faster logistics, tighter timelines
If defence ministries and prime contractors can move goods more quickly within the EU, expectations will rise for packaging that supports rapid loading, tracking and trans-shipment, from pallet-level designs to RFID-enabled labels and tamper-evident seals. - Hazardous materials and dangerous goods
The volume of hazardous materials moving through European hubs could increase as the EU seeks to rebuild stocks of ammunition, propellants and critical chemicals. Reuters has reported that EU leaders are planning a large defence investment push and new loans to strengthen industrial capacity by 2030, underscoring the scale of anticipated flows. The Guardian+1 Safe, standardised packaging for explosives, corrosives, flammables and toxic substances will be central to managing that growth. - Traceability and data
Simplified transfer rules do not remove the need for strict control of sensitive goods. For packaging converters and label producers, this may mean higher demand for serialised packaging, secure labelling technologies and clear, multilingual safety information for dual-use products.
While the Omnibus proposals do not rewrite dangerous goods transport rules, they are explicitly aimed at “accelerating the ramp-up of European defence industrial production” and reducing administrative delays.
In practice, this places extra weight on packaging as the physical interface between regulatory requirements, logistics systems and operational needs.
Investment, capacity and innovation in defence packaging
A third pillar of EU defence readiness 2030 is finance.
The staff working document estimates that at least EUR 800 billion in additional defence investment will be required by 2030, supported by the ReArm Europe plan, a new SAFE loan instrument for joint procurement and more flexible EU fiscal rules.
However, it also underlines that many banks, institutional investors and funds have excluded defence-related activities from their portfolios, often due to environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies and perceived reputational risk.
The document flags that the EU sustainable finance framework and the absence of defence from the EU Taxonomy have created uncertainty and a “negative bias” against investment in the sector.
The Omnibus therefore proposes targeted changes to InvestEU and ESG benchmark rules to make it easier to finance defence readiness projects, while the European Investment Bank has already adjusted its exclusion list to allow some security-related investments, though it still does not finance the production or trade of weapons and ammunition.
For packaging SMEs and mid-caps supplying defence customers, these financial and regulatory shifts could be significant:
- Access to EU-backed finance
Companies that produce specialised military packaging, hazardous goods containers, protective cases or high-barrier films may find it easier to tap EU-guaranteed loans or equity if defence projects become more clearly eligible under InvestEU and related programmes. - Chemicals and critical inputs
At the same time, the Commission has launched a Critical Chemical Alliance to secure supplies of key substances for European industry, responding to plant closures and high import dependency in areas such as methanol and ammonia. Reuters+1 Secure access to these feedstocks is vital for many packaging materials, adhesives and coatings used in both civil and defence applications. - Balancing sustainability and readiness
Packaging for defence is subject to some of the most demanding performance requirements, from extreme temperatures and humidity to long storage times and shock resistance. The Omnibus makes clear that defence exemptions under chemicals rules will remain the exception rather than the norm, and that health and environmental protection standards will be maintained. Packaging suppliers will need to balance EU sustainability goals with the reliability and durability needs of military users, often across the full life cycle of products.
The staff working document estimates that the simplification measures in the Omnibus could save private and public entities around EUR 1.2 billion per year in reduced administrative costs, and that better access to finance could unlock up to EUR 4.7 billion in extra annual investment for defence companies, supporting tens of thousands of jobs.
To capture a share of that investment, packaging firms will need a precise understanding of how defence-related rules on chemicals, labelling, packaging and ESG disclosures are evolving.
The takeaway
For now, packaging is mentioned only indirectly in the defence readiness omnibus, mainly through references to CLP and chemicals policy.
Yet as Europe moves to rebuild its defence industrial base and secure sensitive supply chains, the way hazardous materials, ammunition and high-value equipment are packaged, labelled and transported will be central to both safety and speed.
For the global packaging industry, the message from Brussels is clear: EU defence readiness 2030 is no longer a specialist policy debate.
It is a structural shift that will reach deep into materials choices, design standards, logistics models and investment decisions across the entire packaging value chain.
