Huber launches new low-migration ink formulation

German ink manufacturer Huber Group has developed NewV pack MGA, a low-migration UV offset ink for food packaging.
 
Huber said the NewV pack MGA formulation is unlike other products on the market, with migration limited even if the ink is not fully cured. The company said this guarantees reliable food packaging printing even if the UV lamps are no longer emitting energy at their full capacity.
 
Huber Group said it has developed this new product in response to strict legislation stating that food packaging may not contain substances that could transfer onto foodstuff beyond defined limit values.
 
The NewV pack MGA inks are designed specially for printing food packaging and satisfy Framework Regulation (EC) No. 1953/2004 and the Swiss Ordinance on Materials and Articles in Contact with Food SR 817.023.21.

‘We are also the first ink manufacturer anywhere in the world to provide this assurance for UV products in the form of a written guarantee’

 
The cured ink film of the NewV pack MGA only contains components that do not migrate or may migrate but have been evaluated for food contact. Even inks that are not fully cured display low-migration properties. The limited amounts of substances used in the ink formulations are such that the specific migration limit values for the substances evaluated cannot be exceeded in the packaged foodstuff even in a worst-case scenario, Huber said.
 
Low-migration UV inks have been used for UV packaging printing for a number of years. Unlike conventional low-migration inks, achieving a low level of migration with UV printing depends greatly on how thoroughly the UV ink and lacquer film is cured. The less complete a curing process is, the more constituents from binders, thinners and photoinitiators remain potential migrants.
 
The NewV pack MGA range of inks display excellent organoleptic attributes as well as a high tolerance to fountain solution and good ink/water balance. In UV offset printing, both sheet-feed and continuous printing, they are suited for use on paper and card as well as UV letterpress printing with in-line corona pre-treatment. Non-absorbent materials should however be tested in advance, Huber added.
 
Hot foil embossing is also possible with the new UV inks. Alongside the four CMYK shades, customers can also select special spot colors, basic CRS colors for mixing systems and basic Pantone colors. UV lacquer and metallic colors are to follow shortly. The previous MVP color series will be replaced by NewV pack MGA with this launch.
 
The ink is manufactured in separate purpose-built production plants following strict Good Manufacturing Practice steps as is standard for MGA in order to avoid contamination during production or from unsuitable primary products. NewV pack MGA means that statutory requirements can now also be reliably met in UV offset printing and therefore provides maximum peace of mind for packaging and food manufacturers.
 
Provided good manufacturing practice is followed in packaging production, Huber guarantees that no substances beyond the applicable limit values can be transferred from the packaging’s ink to the foodstuff inside.
 
‘The new UV offset inks reliably stay below the thresholds.’ said Thomas Glaser, product manager for NewV at Huber Group. ‘This gives printing companies and food producers the best peace of mind they’ll find anywhere on the market right now.
 
‘We are also the first ink manufacturer anywhere in the world to provide this assurance for UV products in the form of a written guarantee.’