Environmental considerations in our everyday work
Environmental considerations are becoming increasingly important in the B2B sector. As a professional label manufacturer, we look closely at how materials and energy are used in our processes. If environmental aspects are important in your choice of labels, you will find below some of the concrete measures we have already implemented.
Environmental measures in our production
We continuously review our label production processes, with particular attention to material use, energy use and the handling of production waste. These are some of the measures we have already implemented:
- Our company fleet consists of 100% electrically powered vehicles.
- For the packaging of your labels, we no longer use plastic filling material and instead use filling material made from 100% recycled cardboard.
- Our communication and invoicing are digital.
- The electricity we purchase comes from locally generated solar energy.
- For heating, we use heat recovery from the printing presses.
- Digital printing does not require chemically treated printing plates. This eliminates the material use and waste associated with these plates.
- Paper and material scraps are automatically extracted, transported through a pipe system and collected. The material is then sent for recycling.
- We offer washable and easily removable label materials, designed to allow the label to be separated from bottles or jars during a suitable washing or removal process, so that the packaging can subsequently be sent for recycling.
Materials with recycled and plant-based content for your labels
As customers increasingly ask for label materials with specific material and sourcing characteristics, unieketiket.nl offers a wide selection:
- Almost all of our papers carry an FSC® Mix Credit claim (see calculator).
- Grass paper, made with 30% grass fibers
- Hemp paper, with 50% hemp fibers
- Bio-based PE film
- Recycled paper
- Removable and washable label materials. These allow the packaging to be more easily separated from the label after use. Depending on the materials and the recycling process, the packaging can then be sent for reuse and/or recycling.
Learn more about these materials on the pages: label materials with recycled and plant-based content and removable labels.
Note: Due to their unique properties, different batches of natural paper may vary slightly in color and texture. Due to the structure of the material, fine lettering and elements may be lost. Irregularities may occur with full-surface printing.
Wash-off labels
For products in deposit bottles or jars, wash-off labels on rolls are an ideal solution. After the bottles are returned, the labels can be removed during washing in a lye solution. We offer several paper materials with a water-soluble wash-off adhesive. See our wash-off labels
FSC® materials for your labels.
Material sourcing is an important consideration for many customers. We therefore offer FSC-certified materials carrying an FSC Mix Credit claim.
What does FSC Mix Credit mean?
FSC Mix Credit is an FSC claim based on the credit system. The amount of FSC-certified and/or recycled input used in the production process determines the amount of material that may be sold with an FSC Mix Credit claim. Non-certified virgin material used within this system must meet the FSC Controlled Wood requirements.
More information about FSC labels can be found at: www.fsc.nl/nl-nl/fsc-per-sector/papier-verpakkingen.
Alternative plastic materials (PP and PE)
For PP and PE materials, we offer alternatives using recycled or non-fossil feedstocks:
- Ocean Bound (PP film) uses plastic waste collected from areas within 50 km of the coast where inadequate waste management creates a risk of plastic reaching the ocean. After processing, the material has properties comparable to PP material. Now available at unieketiket.nl.
- Bio-based PE film, produced using non-fossil feedstocks such as used cooking oil. The material has processing properties comparable to conventional PE and can be processed in the same way. The PE film can be recycled when correctly sorted into a suitable polyolefin recycling stream.
Read more in our blog post on alternative label materials.
Requesting Samples
Would you like sample labels of the above or other materials? If so, please contact our customer service team. You can reach us by telephone on (+31) (0)30 808 05 97 or by email: info@unieketiket.nl.