When it comes to sustainability, the lion’s share of the focus is usually devoted to eco-friendly packaging options, as well as the boxes and containers that will ship them. In the interest of originality, therefore, we’re devoting this year’s Earth Day post to a less-commonly-considered part of the packaging process; the marking and labeling. Yes, although marking and labeling may seem to be a small component of the overall job, they still contribute to a significant amount of waste throughout the supply chain. Below are some ways that small businesses and craft breweries can help reduce waste and save money. 
 
Ink vs. Labels
 
Our first tip is a pretty easy one: instead of printing the logo and other necessary information on a paper or plastic label, and then adhering it to the product package, consider applying the label directly onto the bag/box/bottle. This method is much more sustainable, because there is no waste created from the discarded backing paper, and it’s more cost-efficient, because instead of paying for two items—labels and the product packaging—you’re just paying for one.
 
In addition, most leading brands of commercial inkjet printers have recyclable ink cartridges, which only need to be replaced after several thousand codings. Of course, you will need to invest in an inkjet printer capable printing on various materials, such as the Squid Ink Copilot 128. But the one-time investment can save waste in the long run, and double as a great selling point for your eco-minded customers!
 
Use Eco-Friendly Label Materials
 
If you still like the labeled look, and the versatility which it provides you (for instance, being able to make a small batch of Christmas-themed labels, or custom labels for a friend’s wedding) there’s no need to give them up entirely. There are now several eco-friendly label options on the market which are made of renewable, raw materials, like sugar cane fibers, coconut fibers, bamboo, and recycled materials. Some eco-friendly label options are even compostable to boot! (If you decide to go this route, remember to investigate compost-friendly ink, too).
 
Another great option is to use liner-less labels, which produce less waste. Again, all of these are great options for small boutique distributors whose customers value green initiatives and are willing to pay slightly more for them (thereby compensating you for the higher costs).
 
Use Your Space Wisely
 
It may sound trivial, but this tip can actually save you a lot in marking and coding supplies, while at the same time reducing packaging waste. Take a look at all the labels or symbols which will be applied to your product, and look for unused white space that could be filled. Many companies use labels that are too large for the information printed on them, in order to make the data more legible for human eyes. However, in the age of automation, many labels and codes will be read by scanners and sensors that do not require as  large a size as we do. You might be able to reduce expenses, and material waste, by making your labels and/or packaging only as big as they need to be, and no larger.
 
Mark and Label In-House
 
A couple weeks ago, we wrote about the advantages of printing labels in-house. Whether you decide to use labels, or print directly on the package, marking your products in your own facility is a great way to be sustainable, as well as cost-effective and efficient. By cutting out the middle step of shipping products to and from another facility, you’re decreasing your carbon footprint and saving money to boot.
 
Even better, being able to print on demand in your own facility means you can eliminate the bottlenecks that typically affect businesses when they receive sudden, rush orders. If demand suddenly spikes, you won’t need to halt production while you wait on an outside supplier for a delivery.
 
Spring forward with SSI Packaging!
 
As more and more businesses open up, we at SSI Packaging are grateful to have made it through the year, and excited to welcome clients both new and old to our Richmond location. We are proud to stock a huge range of packaging supplies, moving boxes, shipping boxes, mailers, and of course, marking and coding equipment for small businesses across the East coast. Be sure to stop by and see us for whatever your business needs to thrive this year and beyond!
 

Most craft brewers are so busy thinking about the product that goes in the bottle, they neglect to devote time to the bottle itself. But brewers beware: Appearance is a big factor that influences purchasers’ decisions. What your label looks like, and who prints it, worth some consideration; both factors will have a big impact on your overall success.
 
If you’re just starting out in your craft brewing journey, you’re probably wondering who should make your labels—an outsourced labeling company, or your own, in-house personnel. Below, we outline some benefits and advantages of each option.
 
In-House Labeling vs. Outsourced Labeling
 
As we mentioned above, you have two main options when it comes to labeling your beer:

1. An outsourced printing vendor. This will be either a physical, brick-and-mortar company complete with equipment and staff members, or websites like Labely and Grog Tag, which allow you to select your specifications from a few fields, then receive a box in the mail.
2. In-house printing. As the name suggests, this is printing which happens under your own roof, managed by yourself, your partner(s) or your employees.

 
Neither is “better” than the other; both options have different pluses and minuses which can help influence your decision.
 
Advantages of label printing vendors  
 
Outsourced vendors, particularly the brick-and-mortar type, are generally great for those who want to have quality at any cost. Benefits of outsourcing to a printing vendors give you:

• Greater convenience. Outsourced labeling can give you huge time savings and peace of mind. Some printing vendors will manage the entire labeling process from start to finish, including designing the label itself.

 

• Room for creativity. Walk-in print shops can typically customize every aspect of the label, giving you much more wiggle room for creative shapes, sizes and textures. Online print shops offer a little less, but still have a wide menu of offerings.

 

• Professionalism. Since labeling companies are typically very experienced in what they do, mistakes and mishaps are rare, and the end product is more reliably professional in its appearance. If you undertake labeling yourself, there may be a bit of a learning curve.

 
Disadvantages of outsourcing to a printing vendor
 
With all that said, outsourcing to a vendor also has some drawbacks. These include:   

• Cost. While working with an printing company does save you a significant amount of time and effort, it also tends to be pricey. And that makes sense: Your patronage is helping to pay for the printing equipment, maintenance, repairs, and labor. And that labor can extend to any designers, account managers, marketers, and administrative personnel that the company might employ. All of those people need paychecks, and the final price tag will reflect that.

 

• Reduced agility. In business and in life, things tend to happen unexpectedly (like, off the top of our heads, the Covid-19 pandemic). You never know when you might suddenly receive an emergency, rush order with a hefty payoff. Outsourcing your label printing limits your ability to be responsive. If your printers are all in-house, you can access them at any time of day or night, instead of having to wait anxiously for a response or an order. 

 

• Less room for experimentation. Most label vendors require customers to commit to a minimum order size, such as 5,000 labels. If you’re already 100% satisfied with your current label, this doesn’t present much of a problem; but if you’re just starting out, you might need to test your first round of labels “in the field,” so-to-speak. Working with a vendor means that you won’t have as much flexibility with what you can try and reject. If you order a design in bulk, and end up changing your mind later down the road, you might end up with 3,000 unusable labels lying around.

 
Advantages of In-House Printing

Getting started with in-house printing is easy, and comes with its own array of benefits. These include:

• Small-batch capability. As we discussed earlier, labeling vendors are usually a better option for companies that will be ordering a few thousand labels at a time. If you are a small brewery selling right from your taproom, and only need a few hundred labels at a time, having an in-house labeler will enable you to print only exactly what you need, when you need it.  
• Greater control. This, in our opinion, is the main reason to consider in-house label printing. Owning your own labeling equipment allows you to have control over the entire production process, from start to finish. There’s no need to hope that your order arrives soon; hope that your order is to your specifications; hope that the vendor gets back to you; or hope that the reprint is delivered correctly, too. Instead, you can print, view, and access your own labels before the ink is even dry. You don’t have to depend on anyone else, which offers a lot of business owners significant peace of mind.
• More efficiency. Labeling your beer in-house greatly expedites the production process. You don’t have to spend time negotiating prices, exchanging emails, or signing contracts. Get an 11:00 p.m. bulk order for a wedding happening tomorrow? Just head to your office/garage/distillery and start printing—no need to wait for the vendor’s doors to open the next morning.
• Reduced costs. In-house labeling can often yield brewers significant cost savings. You will, of course, have to continue to pay for ink, the bulk of the labor will be, in a sense, free. Essentially, you’ll be choosing to spend time instead of money (which we’ll expand on below).

Disadvantages of In-House Labeling
​
Printing your own craft beer labels also has some drawbacks. These include:

• Lack of equipment options. When you work with a printing vendor, they will usually have multiple printing and labeling machines in-house. As a small business, though, you will probably only be able to afford one, at least at first. While it’s true that many of today’s industrial printers boast a wide range of abilities, no single machine can beat a suite full of options. In other words, once you purchase your printer, that’s the one you will have to rely on for the next 5-7 years. If you have more creative ideas that exceed your printer’s capabilities, you’ll have to outsource, bringing you back to square one
• Maintenance and upkeep costs. Speaking of your printer running for the next 5-7 years, if you want it to last that long, it will require regular maintenance and upkeep. Some business owners find this inconvenient, and those costs will add up. Which leads us to...
• Opportunity cost. As you are doubtlessly already all-too-aware, every hour in your day has great value, especially as a small business owner. If you’re like most humans, you only have so much energy to give, and if you choose to devote time to managing the printers and labeling process, you won’t be able to spend it elsewhere. While you will be saving money, the time you spend might not be worth it.

Conclusion

​To wrap things up, only you can determine which printing method will be best for your particular circumstance. Our only bit of advice that can apply to everyone is to spend some time weighing your options. Even though it’s just essentially a little sticker, a label has a big effect on whether your target consumer decides to reach for a bottle, or leave it on the shelf in favor of a safer, more well-known option.

Food labels are important, more than for providing us with some in-store entertainment while standing at the checkout line. They help us determine that our foods contain what they say they do, and don’t contain the stuff that we don’t want. Seems pretty basic to us now, but back in the day the food industry was the wild-wild-west, full of bad guys putting whatever they wanted into jars and calling it jam.
 
In the beginning food quality was pretty much thought to be up to the consumer. Food distribution was wholly unregulated and small scale, with oversight being mandated to state lines and mainly concerned with weight, which helped to serve trade interests. When the industrial revolution rolled around the advent of chemical additives and mass product distribution techniques allowed for producers to supply food at an unprecedented rate. Transportation improvements allowed for the widespread distribution of processed goods, allowing for synthetic foods and packaged cereals to dominate shelf-space nation wide.
 
The lack of government oversight allowed for bad actors to create concoctions of edible and sometimes not-so edible products masked beneath deceiving labels. There were reports of this happening with jam products with some companies blending a combo of tar, apple peels, and sawdust and coal-dye tar together. Producers of high quality goods started to get frustrated with that competitive cost advantage that these inferior products were gaining and began to move towards government action to try to ameliorate the issue.
 
This is where the first attempt to regulate food quality came in, with the establishment of the 1906 US Pure Food and Drug Act. This act ensured that food quality was the responsibility of the supplier and said that food actually had to contain real, unadulterated ingredients. The social climate of the time impacted the food regulation industry, with things like the woman’s suffrage movement and Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” impacting public perception of food safety. These cultural shifts led to the 1938 food drug and cosmetic act, which still shapes many of the food labeling laws that we see today.
 
Today food labels help keep consumers informed, and work for small businesses to provide assurances that your products are high quality. As a small business owner, if you are ever in need of labeling needs SSI provides reliable printers with easy to navigate interfaces. To find out more click here or call us today at 804.649.1111