Packaging leader SÜDPACK and industrial printing specialist LEIBINGER have joined forces to meet the growing demand for sustainable packaging solutions. 

The first joint project is testing the suitability of CIJ inks for printing on recyclable films for packaging food that is sterilized following the packaging process. The tested system combining packaging and printing saves food manufacturers time and ensures investment security.

Today, packaging films are expected to be resource-saving and recyclable to support a circular economy. The EU Packaging Regulation requires all packaging on the EU market to be recyclable by 2030. As a result, composite materials are being increasingly replaced by monomaterials. If these monomaterials are not equipped with a barrier function that prevents ink components from migrating to food, they may only be printed with harmless ink. This raises the requirements for the production, coding and marking of packaging films.

Advancing R&D for more sustainability

The packaging market is experiencing very fundamental changes. It is with this in mind that SÜDPACK is continuously expanding its portfolio of recyclable film solutions. The company is developing monomaterials that are very much on par with previous composite materials – both in terms of convenience and protection. For printing and coding this type of food packaging, LEIBINGER offers industrial inkjet printers and develops special continuous inkjet (CIJ) inks together with SIS Ink Solution, a LEIBINGER Group company. The interaction of these components is the focus of the joint project between SÜDPACK and LEIBINGER.

In test: Sterilization resistance of CIJ ink for marking food packaging

Are continuous inkjet inks suitable for printing on and subsequently sterilizing recyclable food packaging? Specialists from both companies investigated this very question at SÜDPACK’s technical center. The team printed the innovative single-material solutions based on PE and PP with advanced CIJ ink. 

During the subsequent steam sterilization, the printed films were heated at 121°C for 30 minutes. Assessment of the print samples before and after sterilization showed that the print was still perfectly legible. The inks used are suitable for printing on food contact materials. This means that they only contain raw materials that are approved in compliance with the German Printing Inks Ordinance and the Swiss Commodities Ordinance.

How the collaborative project came about

The idea for the joint project between the two family-run Swabian companies SÜDPACK and LEIBINGER originated at a meeting at the PACK EXPO trade fair in Chicago in 2022. Together, the two companies set themselves the goal of providing food manufacturers with a packaging and printing solution that had already been tested for key customer requirements.

Results can be used directly by customers

“The sterilization resistance of ink is always a major challenge. I am delighted that we have succeeded in developing a food-approved CIJ ink that is this effective when printing on monomaterials,” explains Dr. Thomas Paul, ink expert and Managing Director at SIS Ink Solution, a LEIBINGER Group company.