In the retail environment, brands have mere seconds to attract consumer attention and make an impact on their buying decisions. Color is a key influencer when consumers are forming their first impressions of a product, making it a critical component of package design. To gain insight into how future trends can inform packaging innovation, the Crown Aerosols & Promotional Packaging Europe and Crown Food Europe teams recently embarked on a comprehensive research project with color and material designer and trend forecaster Laura Perryman. Together, they took a deep dive into color, surface, and texture trends with a goal of a better understanding of how consumer behavior impacts aesthetics and color choices.

Highlights • Strong delivery from continuing operations against the backdrop of challenging market conditions ◦ Underlying EBITDA of €680 million, down 28% (H1 2022: €942 million) ◦ Basic underlying earnings per share (EPS) of 67.0 euro cents, down 32% (H1 2022: 98.7 euro cents) ◦ Improved cash generated from operations of €554 million (H1 2022: €519 million) ◦ Robust balance sheet at 0.8 times net debt to underlying EBITDA (31 December 2022: 0.5 times) ◦ Return on capital employed (ROCE) of 19.1% (31 December 2022: 23.7%) • Delivering value accretive growth, sustainably ◦ €1.2 billion of expansionary projects on track and on budget ◦ Announced acquisition of Hinton Pulp mill (Canada) • Sale process of Syktyvkar mill ongoing within an evolving political and regulatory environment

The European Commission will stick to the planned start date of the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). In a letter to the joint body of German packaging producer responsibility organisations (Gemeinsame Stelle dualer Systeme) and the members of the German Bundestag, EU Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall made it clear that the new obligations, including the revised manufacturer definition under extended producer responsibility (EPR), will apply as planned from 12 August 2026.