Home The main international event for the Brazilian converted plastics sector provided companies with opportunities for export, partnerships and access to new global markets
Carlos Moreira, executive director of INP – Brazilian Plastic Institute and Think Plastic Brazil CPO, in his presentation at the IV World Plastic Connection Summit® 2025
Photo: foto_grafista
The IV World Plastic Connection Summit®, held between April 8 and 10 in São Paulo (SP), has established itself as the largest and most strategic global event in the plastics sector. The event reached the milestone of US$7,668,000.00 in business conducted at the event and 1,049 meetings between participating members. Organized by Think Plastic Brazil, a portfolio of solutions for the plastic-converted products sector in the internationalization process for target markets, carried out through a partnership between ApexBrasil (Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency) and INP (Brazilian Plastic Institute), the meeting also brought together 1,128 professionals in person over the three days, with a further 24,148 accesses to the online platform from 9,182 companies from 127 countries.
“We are very pleased. The Buyer Project generated almost 8 million dollars in business, with 127 countries watching us online with simultaneous translation into English, Spanish and Portuguese. We have grown a lot in this fourth edition and had a packed event, launching the International Yearbook 2025, launching a new Color Trend® 2026 and the Internationalization Guide, all focusing on the international expansion of our companies. We also highlight the great authorities and opinion makers and, above all, the change agents who helped change the mindset of the industry,” said Carlos Moreira, executive director of INP – Brazilian Plastics Institute and Think Plastic Brazil CPO.
BUSINESS RESULTS
Buyer Project business round held at the IV World Plastic Connection Summit®
Photo: foto_grafista
With impressive results, the 2025 edition of the IV World Plastic Connection Summit® reaffirmed its relevance for the internationalization of the Brazilian converted plastics industry. US$7,668,000.00 in business was closed during the event by the Buyer Project and US$46,977,500.00 in expectations for the next 12 months. In total, 145 member companies participated in the event, holding 1,049 business meetings and generating 904 new strategic contacts, significantly expanding business opportunities and the global reach of the companies involved.
The IV World Plastic Connection Summit® has become an important networking venue, bringing together 172 member companies, in addition to establishing an impressive 132 strategic partnerships with Embassies, Consulates and SECOMs and carrying out 32 collaborations directly with MAPA (Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply) through the Agricultural Attachés. The export clinics, a highlighted initiative of the event, brought together 13 partner companies (among them ApexBrasil) and resulted in 184 productive meetings, creating effective dialogues for future commercial opportunities.
The international dimension was reinforced by the strategic presence of 33 importers from 14 countries (South Africa, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, USA, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Dominican Republic and Uruguay), in addition to the special coverage of 05 (five) international journalists from Germany, Colombia, USA, Mexico and the United Kingdom.
INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR
The International Seminar of the IV World Plastic Connection Summit® was hosted by Micaela Góes, presenter of GNT, and its institutional opening featured speeches by Paulo Henrique Rangel Teixeira, Treasurer of the Brazilian Plastics Institute (INP) and Executive President of Abiplast; Américo Bartilotti Neto, President of the Brazilian Plastics Institute (INP) and Commercial Vice President of Braskem in South America; Emerson Raiol, Export Promotion Specialist – ApexBrasil and ApexBrasil Manager of Think Plastic Brazil; Eduardo Berkovitz, President of the Fiscal Council of INP, Member of the Strategic Committee of Think Plastic Brazil and Member of the Management Committee of Think Plastic Brazil; Marcelo Carrullo, Growth Director of Drummond Advisors; Dr. Alvaro Toubes Prata, CEO of EMBRAPII; Rui Mucaje, President of Afrochamber – Afro-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce; Edinam Adjei-Sika, President of the Brazil-Ghana Chamber of Commerce; and Carlos Clur, CEO of Eletrolar.
After the opening, Carlos Moreira, executive director of INP – Brazilian Plastic Institute and Think Plastic Brazil CPO, presented details about the construction of the World Plastic Connection Summit® and INP updates to expand the excellence of services to members, internationalization processes and partnerships, and emphasized the premises of the event and the association.
The agenda continued with an inspiring round table on design and innovation, bringing together designers Marco Lobo, Dijon de Moraes and Gisele Raulik, who shared experiences, cases and reflections on the role of design as a driver of transformation in the plastics industry. “This is the role you can play, helping companies to put the Brazilian identity into their products because then it will be a competitive force and a differentiator”, commented Gisele. Next, João Henrique Alves, from Valgroup, presented an analysis of how Brazil is overcoming adversities and taking a leading role in global packaging trends: “Brazil has been leading some trends and there are still new ones to adopt to make its consumer goods production industry increasingly efficient and sustainable.”
Dijon de Moraes, Marco Lobo and Gisele Raulik at the round table on design and innovation.
Photo: foto_grafista
Also in the morning, Drummond Advisors presented the Internationalization Guide, an exclusive publication that offers strategies, tools and practical insights to help companies explore new markets and achieve international success. Closing the morning’s program, a roundtable discussion led by Neivia Justa, Director of Communications & Marketing and a reference in diversity and inclusion in the corporate environment, brought up the theme “Women in Leadership” in an enriching chat about equity, protagonism and ESG with Ana Cristina Paiva, Regional Sales Manager for ExxonMobil Química in Latin America; Bruna Folster, Executive Vice President of Sales for Eco Ventures Brasil; Ianda Lopes, Legal Director for Uber; and Karen Sandhof, a senior executive with extensive experience in technology and operations. “Why have a panel with only women at an event like this? So that we can naturalize and normalize the presence of women in leadership positions,” highlights Neivia.
Karen Sandhof, Bruna Folster, Ianda Lopes, Ana Cristina Paiva and Neivia Justa at the round table on female leadership.
Photo: foto_grafista
Ângela Hirata, former foreign trade director at Alpargatas SA, opened the afternoon by talking about her success in internationalizing products with the Havaianas case. “You don’t need to go abroad to find something to produce here in Brazil,” emphasized Hirata.
Ângela Hirata presenting the Havaianas case
Photo:foto_grafista
The program continued with a new feature in Color Trend 2026®, the launch of see color in the plastics sector, a tactile language method that uses high relief to provide access to color information for people with visual impairments, presented by Sandra Marchi, creator of the method, and Carlos Oliveira, director of see color. Those present at the event had the opportunity to learn about the application of the see color method in practice. “It needed to be small, easy and with a universal design. And I thought, as something that is inherent to visual perception, as is color, how am I going to transform this into 3D? How can it be tactile? And that’s how see color was born”, explains Sandra.
Carlos Oliveira emphasized his challenge of devising strategies to sell the method to companies in the area. “Selling technological innovation is very difficult, but assisted technological innovation is much more difficult, because most entrepreneurs said, ‘Okay, so what, what are we going to gain by serving such a specific audience?’” stated Oliveira.
Carlos Oliveira and Sandra Marchi teaching the see color method in practice
Photo: foto_grafista
Next, renowned architect Marcelo Rosenbaum, together with Fabiana Zanin, shared his views on the highly anticipated launch of Color Trend 2026®, called “From biomes to colors, from Brazil to Brazil”, revealing the colors, sensations and narratives that should guide the sector in the coming years. Rosenbaum emphasized the appreciation of the beauty of the different Brazilian biomes. “In this catalog, each color brings back a memory. The gray “beautiful for rain” reminds me of Várzea Queimada, from where you can see the cloudy sky that announces the rare rain in the Hinterlands. The purple and green of the spaghetti-woven chair take me to the porch of Mr. João da Cruz’s house. Each of these colors that I see also reminds me of the people who are with me on this journey and in this work, which was an opportunity to revisit our history and retrace the paths that brought us here”, comments the architect.
Marcelo Rosenbaum and Fabiana Zanin explaining the research for Color Trend 2026®
Photo: foto_grafista
Finally, economist Ricardo Amorim concluded the international seminar program with a lecture on artificial intelligence and other paradigm shifts that will transform the future of businesses in converted plastics. Amorim led the audience to reflect and discuss innovation, adaptation and new opportunities that arise in a constantly evolving scenario. “The sum of issues directly related to Brazil, and the current global geopolitical situation, are creating unique opportunities for Brazilian industry in several subsectors, including the plastics sector, and I want to draw attention to how not to let these opportunities pass by,” emphasized the economist.
Ricardo Amorim in his lecture on artificial intelligence in the plastics sector
Photo: foto_grafista
The International Seminar concluded with the presentation of the International Award 2025, an award that acknowledges and recognizes industries in the sector that are standing out in the internationalization process. The event also included the presentation of a plaque in honor of Lincoln Seragini for his dedication, commitment and excellence in the work of strengthening the internationalization actions of the converted plastics sector, and of Emerson Raiol and Edison Terra.
Lincoln Seragini receives honor
Foto: foto_grafista
2025 WORLD PLASTIC CONNECTION INTERNATIONAL AWARD WINNERS
45 companies signed up to participate in the award, which aims to recognize merit and encourage the dissemination of results from the Brazilian converted plastics industry in its export scope. The award has four categories divided by level of maturity (Beginners, Mature, Experts) and type of vertical (Retail or Technical Plastics).
The announcement began with the World Plastic Business Case Award, which honors the best international success stories. They are:
TECHNICAL
Iniciante Acess – NANOX
Madura Special – L&L DESTAK
Expert Excellency – FIBRASA
RETAIL
Iniciante Acess – FLORIDIS
Madura Special – KAPAZI
Expert Excellency – FAME
Next, the winners of the World Plastic Development Award were announced, which recognized the companies that have evolved the most in terms of export maturity. They are:
TECHNICAL
Iniciante Acess – TEIXEIRA TÊXTIL
Madura Special – CRISTAL EMBALAGENS
Expert Excellency – TERPHANE
RETAIL
Iniciante Acess – PABOVI
Madura Special – KAPAZI
Expert Excellency – TERMOLAR
The World Plastic Commercial and Image Promotion Investments Award category recognized the largest investments in international, commercial and image promotion. They are:
TECHNICAL
Iniciante Acess – TEIXEIRA TÊXTIL
Madura Special – L&L DESTAK
Expert Excellency – COPOBRAS
RETAIL
Expert Excellency – JAGUAR
The last category of the day, the World Plastic Global Design Award, rewards companies that are investing in original product and packaging design, actions and projects related to sustainable design and ecodesign. They are:
TECHNICAL
Iniciante Acess – TEIXEIRA TÊXTIL
Madura Special – L&L DESTAK
Expert Excellency – TERPHANE
RETAIL
Madura Special – NUTRIPLAN
Expert Excellency – VASAP
About Carlos Moreira
Executive Director of INP – Brazilian Plastic Institute and Think Plastic Brazil CPO
A professional with over 20 years of experience in the internationalization of companies in various sectors of the economy. He currently holds the position of CPO at the Brazilian Plastics Institute (INP), leading initiatives that support industries in the sector in expanding into international markets.
He stands out for his strategic project management, negotiation with international stakeholders, identification of new market opportunities and promotion of innovative partnerships. He has a strong commitment to innovation, design and sustainability, which are fundamental elements for the growth of companies on the global stage.
About Think Plastic Brazil
Think Plastic Brazil began its activities with 38 companies and, over the last 20 years, has expanded its participation to more than 220 companies. During this period, the Portfolio promoted 4,773 participations of companies in the sector in 240 projects specifically for Trade Promotion, resulting in 64,366 meetings. The economic impact was significant, with more than US$ 1.247 billion in business generated and a total investment of US$ 12.338 million, achieving an impressive ROI of US$ 101.04 for every dollar invested.
For those interested in joining the Portfolio, visit
www.thinkplasticbrazil.com, follow our social networks (@thinkplasticbrazil) or contact Richard Assis by email richard.assis@thinkplasticbrazil.com
About INP
Founded in 1989, the Brazilian Plastics Institute (INP) emerged amidst the globalization process and the need to make the plastics market more competitive internationally. Its strength and representation are due to the union of the Brazilian Plastics Industry Association (ABIPLAST), the Brazilian Chemical Industry Association (ABIQUIM) and the Synthetic Resins Industry Union of the State of São Paulo (SIRESP).
The goal of the INP, as a sectoral technology entity, is to be the hub of the entire plastics production chain in Brazil. To this end, the entity maintains an extensive workforce qualification program, promotes access to the most modern technologies, especially for small and medium-sized companies, and develops Technical Standards for the manufacture of better quality products.
About ApexBrasil
The Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) works to promote Brazilian products and services abroad and attract foreign investment to strategic sectors of the Brazilian economy. To achieve its objectives, ApexBrasil carries out diverse trade promotion actions aimed at promoting exports and enhancing the value of Brazilian products and services abroad, such as prospective and trade missions, business rounds, support for the participation of Brazilian companies in major international fairs, visits by foreign buyers and opinion makers to learn about the Brazilian production structure, among other business platforms that also aim to strengthen the Brazil brand.
The Agency also works in a coordinated manner with public and private actors to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to Brazil, focusing on strategic sectors for developing the competitiveness of Brazilian companies and the country.
