Have you ever wondered what makes an ink safe for use on food packaging? What stops a company from using a toxic chemical that could leech into your food?
It stands to reason that an ink containing ingredients obviously unsafe to consume, like lead, should not be considered food safe. But who decides which ingredients are safe?
A food-safe ink contains additives that the Food & Drug Administration deems safe for use in “food contact substances.” Food contact substances include paper, wraps, cardboard, adhesives, plastics, and so on. If an additive is already on the FDA’s list, and conditions for using it are followed, it’s okay. If the additive is new, the FDA requires scientific evidence to show that it’s safe. Each ink manufacturer submits a request to the FDA to verify that any new additives are safe.
Custom Packaging & Products uses inks only from manufacturers that have the approved FDA additives in their inks. We want to make sure people aren’t eating anything dangerous or untested when they use our packaging.
To health!
Ink bottle image by Adrian Park of Wikimedia.