Green Printing
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| Image from Pixabay |
Guest Blog
As much of an effort businesses and individuals make to become paper-free, there are inevitable needs for print products.
A special event requires invitation printing and custom envelopes to send them out. For these particular needs, there have been some green printing developments. Not only regarding recycle paper, but also eco-friendly ink to help the process.
Eco-friendly ink is alcohol-free, based from vegetable oil,—and mixed with other oil sources like soy, canola and flax. Soy ink has had a lot of success being marketed as the best solution. And even though it produces great results, it is worth noticing that it is not 100-percent soy; it also contains chinawood and linseed oil to meet printing standards.
Environmentally friendly custom envelopes aren't as hard to find as they used to be. Organic materials, recycled paper, vegetable inks, and other non-polluting techniques offer various valid options. Even professional printing companies have created eco-friendly product ranges prove that green printing is more than a fad, but an alternative option for printing projects.
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) are the main concern of green printing. Vegetable inks produce smaller quantities of VOC than regular ink. But unfortunately, they still contain some amounts of petroleum oil to function properly. The reason is that removing it entirely requires more heat to dry the ink; in the end requiring more energy, thereby negating all eco-friendly efforts.
Contrary to popular belief, eco-friendly inks do not mean lower ink quality. Invitation printing with soy or any other vegetable ink comes out with great quality, with the advantage of easing the paper recycling process and the fact that it washes off easier from the presses.
Other green-printing techniques include mixing minerals and organic pigments to create luxury products, instead of using highly processed material. Recycle solvents and water-soluble coating are also common practices.
Make sure to ask for green printing option before ordering any invitation printing or custom envelopes. Professional printing companies have available options but they are not always highly advertised. Is there any environmentally friendly product or practice you would like to recommend? Use the comment section to spread the word.
