What Kind of Ink Is Used To Print Packaging Boxes And Is Environmentally Friendly?

  When customizing product packaging boxes, the eco-friendliness of the packaging is highly worth considering. More and more brands aspire for their product packaging not to leave a negative impact on the Earth. Apart from opting for eco-friendly packaging materials, using environmentally friendly ink, such as soy ink, is also an excellent choice. So, what exactly is soy-based ink, and why should we choose it?

  Petroleum is a crucial material for producing traditional inks. In the late 1970s, a shortage of petroleum led to skyrocketing prices. The American Newspaper Association realized the need for more reliable printing materials. After trying over two thousand types of plant oils, soybean oil was ultimately chosen for its stable performance as a replacement for petroleum.

  Compared to petroleum-based inks, soy ink reduces the production of volatile organic compounds, thereby addressing environmental health and safety concerns in the printing industry. Specific regulations by the American Association regarding the content of soybean oil in ink have also been established: heatset web offset inks should contain no less than 10% soybean oil, sheetfed offset inks should contain no less than 20%, expanded (foamed) inks should contain no less than 40%, and news ink must contain at least 55%.

The advantages of soy ink over traditional inks are also quite evident:

  Vibrant Color and High Saturation: Compared to traditional inks, images printed with soy ink are clearer and brighter. Additionally, soy oil has high transparency and vivid colors, making it easy to achieve a wide range of colorful packaging prints.

  Environmentally Friendly: Soy ink has a low volatile organic compound content of 0.8%, compared to 4.6% in petroleum-based inks. This confirms that soy-based inks have a smaller impact on the Earth's atmosphere compared to other inks. Furthermore, soy has a short growth cycle and can naturally biodegrade, imposing minimal burden on the Earth's environment.

  Easy to Recycle: During the recycling process of any packaging box or paper, there is a deinking step to facilitate the recycling process. Research has shown that soy ink is easier to deink compared to regular ink. Moreover, it causes minimal damage to the paper fibers, and the residue of waste soy ink degrades easily, aiding in wastewater treatment.

  The widespread use of soy ink in packaging boxes is attributed to its excellent stability and eco-friendliness. Furthermore, with the growing awareness of environmental protection, the market development of soy ink internationally will only continue to improve.