Printing Green and Loving It!

The buzz-word in printing these days is “green.” Companies are establishing sustainable business management practices and expecting their employees to follow along. Just as clients are “going green,” so is the printing industry to keep up with this new global demand. Paper, ink and technology are paving the way to less waste and l
ess harm on the environment and this is becoming the norm in the printing industry. But what does it mean to truly print green?

Printing green is good for the environment, right? Yes, this is true. Both the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) offer certifications to paper manufacturers and printers. For a paper or a press to be certified they must follow a chain of custody for every bit of paper that is produced or purchased. The source of the wood used in producing the paper must come from a certified forest that is practicing responsible harvesting and growth management principles. Each certified piece of paper can be tracked back to the forest it originated from. By specifying jobs to print on FSC or SFI certified papers utilizing a certified print vendor you are doing your part to protect the earth’s natural resources for many generations to come.

Paper is not the only “green” material in printing. So is the ink – just think soy, soy-based ink that is. Soy-based ink is non-petroleum based ink that is friendlier to the environment and allows printed products to be more easily recycled when they are printed with this ink. This is because the soy ink is easier to remove in the cleaning process at a recycling plant. The soybean that this ink is derived from also uses less energy to grow and emits less volatile organic compounds (VOC) into the air when used as ink.

The type of printing you choose can also impact the environment. If you choose digital printing over offset then there is less waste. This is because with digital printing you get exactly what you order. There are no overages to account for. However, digital may only be cost effective for print runs under a couple thousand pieces and there is a size limitation for digital presses. If you choose offset printing, you can print using soy-based ink instead of toner. And, offset can be used to print any size and quantity, but is more cost effective on larger print runs.

Here at BG, we pride ourselves on having numerous green printing resources. Our clients can turn to us to lead them down the “greener” path of printing without sacrificing the quality of their print collateral. So the next time you or your client wants to be “green,” just turn to your nearest green printing professional to lead the way.