How the Label and Packaging Printing Industry Dodged a Blackout on Black Ink

Imagine having to tell your customers that black ink and subsequently process printing were off limits. That nearly became the reality in New Jersey and New York, where proposed legislation targeted the use of carbon black in packaging.

Stock grayscale photo of water dropping on a liquid. | Credit: Carolina Roepers at Pexels.com

Regulatory Red Flags

In her article, “Legislative Wins: Protecting Printing Inks in New Jersey and New York,” Sara Osorio, environmental, health and safety affairs coordinator, PRINTING United Alliance, shares how the crisis began with some good intentions “as part of a broader trend targeting certain materials over toxicity concerns.” One of those materials was carbon black.

And this is where we run into a big problem. Osorio writes, “Carbon black is the pigment used to make black ink and plays a critical role in four-color process printing and labeling. A ban would have restricted critical product information, including instructions, warnings, and expiration dates, while also discouraging the use of recycled materials in packaging.”

Fighting for the Industry

Recognizing the stakes, PRINTING United Alliance teamed up with industry coalitions, submitted formal comments to the government and calls to action through the media, and engaged with lawmakers to set the record straight.

A Win for Common Sense

Thanks to these efforts, the revised New Jersey legislation now includes an exemption for printing ink. As even The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) of the California Environmental Protection Agency has recognized that exposure to carbon black does not occur when it remains bound within a product matrix such as ink.

New York has dropped the proposed ban entirely.

To dive deeper into this major win for label and packaging manufacturing, check out the original article by Sara Osorio on PRINTING United Alliance’s website.