Green Printing

The print industry is a very active participant in the environmental movement. More consumers are asking their print suppliers for various forms of environmentally friendly printing. This request often comes in a variety of forms, ranging from "I would like a green print job" to "I want to use a paper with at least 30% post consumer waste" to "I need to have the FSC logo printed on all of my stationery". Some print consumers have a specific need to display a certain logo or use a specific paper, while others desire to take some "green" action without knowing exactly what that means to them or what the choices are. Therefore, it is an invaluable skill to know what the choices are in the realm of "environmentally friendly" printing, and what they mean, for both your customer and for print production.

You, as the print provider, will have the opportunity to guide these requests to a printed product that will fit the client's expectations. You may help them to choose a recycled paper, or after further discussion, you may find that they would find value in pursuing a fully certified print job with their label of certification showcased on their stationery. Printing this label of certification provides on-product proof of that product meeting environmental guidelines of the certifying body.

What are the options?

Using recycled or post-consumer waste papers.
Using papers produced with renewable energy or other "clean" paper mill processes.
Printed label of certification.
Using recycled or post-consumer waste papers.
There are papers available ranging from having 10% recycled content, to being made from 100% post-consumer waste. You can print the recycled logo on your print job.
Using papers produced with renewable energy or other "clean" paper mill processes.
There are many ways paper mills can participate in reducing their impact on the environment. The papers they produce can be certified Green-E, Carbon Neutral, Chlorine Free, ISO certified, and others. These certifications tend to overlap for many mills so their paper brands may carry multiple certifications.
Most of the large paper mills now claim to employ at least some renewable energy or improved chemical or recycling process. Monadnock paper mill in New Hampshire makes their paper with 100% renewable energy, taken from a combination of on-site hydroelectric power and Green-E certified energy (paying to make energy from renewable resources to supply the grid with, in the amount that you use). Learn more about Neenah paper's green initiatives and certifications at Neenah's Website and Mohawk paper's at Mohawk's Website

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Printed label of certification
With Hodgins Engraving, you can print the FSC logo on your stationery to prove that your stationery has come from a responsibly managed forest and supply chain.
There are currently three major certification labels in use: SFI (Sustainable Forestry Initiative), PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification), and FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). These bodies require the manufacturer of print to successfully complete a complex certification process in order to produce certified print jobs. FSC and SFI were recently named the most common, credible eco-labels available, by an environmental marketing group. They meet all criteria of a credible eco-label, which includes third-party certification, a publicly available standard and a transparent standard development process.
Please note that FSC certified paper can be purchased and printed on without the certification process as long as the FSC label is not printed on the product. Only if the label is printed does the printer and print job need to be FSC certified.