According to Smithers’ The Future of Printed Labels to 2029, the movement toward sustainability is reshaping how labels are produced.
The growing demand for reducing plastic usage and ensuring maximum recyclability is accelerating changes in label production and design, with converters and substrate manufacturers at the forefront of this transformation.
The average size of print runs continues to fall, reflecting increasing product proliferation, the rise of products sold online and the desire for customisation. In addition, there has been a growth in ‘boutique brands’, often supplying products online as well as through local retail outlets.
The Role of Digital Printing in Sustainable Labelling
Growth in e-commerce, product proliferation, and the demand for customized packaging have fuelled the need for versatile and sustainable label production methods. Digital printing technology has become mainstream in the label industry due to its ability to economically produce short print runs, allowing brands to meet diverse labelling needs while optimizing resource use.
It contributes to:
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Waste Minimization: Since digital presses require minimal setup time and can print exactly what is needed, they reduce overproduction and material waste compared to traditional analogue presses. This results in less leftover inventory and discarded labels.
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Energy and Resource Efficiency: The improvements in productivity - almost reaching that of flexographic (flexo) printing - mean digital presses use less energy per unit produced. The flexibility of digital printing allows for print-on-demand models, limiting excess usage of materials like paper and ink.
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Eco-friendly Ink Consumption: Advances such as colour profiling optimize ink usage, reducing the environmental impact of the printing process. Less ink wastage means fewer chemicals are introduced into the environment during production.
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Sustainable Supply Chain: Digital label printing supports more localized production with faster turnaround times, reducing the need for long-distance shipping and related emissions. It supports the creation of variable and personalized data labels, reducing the need for large print runs that could go unused.
Additionally, the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in label production is contributing to sustainability. AI-driven automation has enhanced energy efficiency, substrate usage, and production accuracy, reducing overall resource consumption and waste. This technological advancement, combined with sustainable materials, is pushing the boundaries of what label technology can achieve in the context of a circular economy.
Innovations in Label Materials
Label substrate manufacturers are innovating across multiple fronts, too, such as:
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Reducing Environmental Impact with lightweighting labels to minimize material use, solvent-free adhesives and coatings, linerless label technology that eliminates the backing liner, reducing waste and carbon-neutral label products.
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Enhancing Recyclability by incorporating post-consumer recycled content into labels, using FSC-certified papers to ensure sustainable sourcing and leveraging ocean-bound plastics to address plastic pollution.
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Renewable Materials by developing labels made from renewable resources, contributing to reducing reliance on fossil fuels.
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Facilitating Recycling by creating wash-off or removable labels that allow easy separation from packaging, ensuring that both the label and the packaging can be recycled more effectively.
These developments are helping create a positive environmental impact, driving the shift toward a more eco-friendly packaging industry.
Lightweighting and Flexible Packaging
In recent years, the packaging industry has embraced lightweighting as a key strategy for reducing environmental impact. This involves using thinner materials or switching to flexible packaging, which is often more resource-efficient than rigid structures. However, flexible packaging has faced challenges in recyclability, particularly when composed of multiple material types. To address this, many brands are switching to mono-material plastics, which are easier to recycle.
Labels, though a small part of the total packaging weight, can also contribute to lightweighting efforts. By using thinner label stocks and reducing the overall material used, brands can improve sustainability. For example, Coca-Cola’s Dasani brand replaced its previous two-ply laminate label with a monolayer biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) film, which can be easily removed during recycling, improving the recyclability of the bottle and reducing material costs.
Brands Leading the Charge
The issue of sustainability is now, one of the highest priority concerns of many brands. All the leading consumer products have well publicised sustainability policies, and the reduction in packaging waste, together with its safe and efficient recycling, form a major part of their sustainability goals.
Several global brands have publicly committed to reducing the environmental impact of their packaging. For instance,
Unilever has said that by 2025, it would halve the use of virgin plastic and remove more than 100,000 tonnes of plastic entirely. The company is rethinking new packaging solutions focusing on using lighter, stronger and better materials that also have a lower environmental impact, such as thinner film label solutions. Nestlé has set a goal for 100% of its packaging to be recyclable or reusable by 2025. Coca-Cola aims to have all its packaging recyclable by 2025 and plans to use 50% recycled material in its packaging by 2030. Procter & Gamble also targets 100% recyclable or reusable packaging and intends to halve its reliance on virgin petroleum plastic by 2030.
As we have seen these ambitious goals include labels, which are often integrated into the packaging itself. Label manufacturers are increasingly focusing on materials that support a circular economy, with many joining initiatives like the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's Plastics Pact Network. This network aims to redefine packaging and ensure it is reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025.