BioCups: What inks do you use?

We print with soy or water-based inks.

Benefits of these inks:

• Soy-Based inks: It has a number of environmental benefits. Much of the soybean crop requires no irrigation, limited fixed nutrients, and leaves fewer agricultural residues than other crops. Soy ink also has low levels of VOCs, (volatile organic compounds) which helps to reduce air pollution by minimizing toxic emissions. Since naturally clearer soybean oil is available, it is possible to obtain as brightly coloured ink as by using clear petroleum distillates. By using clearer soybean oil grades, less pigment is necessary to produce the same optical effect, which reduces the overall cost of the ink. Soy ink has been found to spread approximately 15% further, reducing ink use and printer cleanup costs.
• Water-Based inks: Oil-based inks contain PVC and phthalates that are harmful to the environment and have been linked to numerous medical disorders. They also require the use of harmful solvents in the cleaning process. Water-based inks do not contain PVC or phthalates and you don’t need solvents to clean up after they’ve been used - you can clean them with water.