With the development of new UV flexo varnishes and UV offset inks for commercial and packaging printing, Siegwerk expands its offering of deinkable solutions further improving the recyclability of UV-coated paper and board print products.

For the recycling of paper and fresh fiber board, it is important that ink and varnish films are fragmented into small hydrophobic (water repellent) particles during the recycling process in order to become detached and more easily separated from the substrate fiber. But present standard UV inks still often show an extremely poor deinkability as they form a solid, chemically, and mechanically resistant layer that is strongly attached to the cellulose fiber like an adhesive plastic layer. Therefore, they are difficult to remove during the recycling process resulting in big color spots in the recycled paper. Studies have also shown that prints coated with water-based dispersion varnishes and UV-curing flexo varnishes, similar to UV standard inks, very often produce problems during the paper and board deinking recycling process.