Printing ink is a formulation containing pigments, dyes, binders, solvents, additives, or other components used to create printed images, text, or markings on a surface.
Printing inks can be used on food packaging, labels, paper, cardboard, and other materials. Some packaging has printing on a surface that does not directly contact food, while other applications require special consideration because substances from the ink or its components may migrate through the material or transfer to food.
Food-packaging ink safety therefore depends on the ink formulation, where it is applied, the packaging structure, the food, and the intended conditions of use. “Printed” does not automatically mean “unsafe,” nor does ink being outside the package automatically eliminate all possibility of chemical transfer.
COMMONLY CONFUSED WITH
- Food-contact surface: the surface that directly touches food. Printing ink may be applied to a non-food-contact surface.
- Chemical migration: the movement of substances from packaging or its components into food.
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