Sun Chemical reports manufacturing sustainability improvements

Sun Chemical has reported reductions in water supply and landfill waste across its global manufacturing operations, alongside expanded product carbon-footprint calculations and renewable energy projects, in its sixteenth annual sustainability report.

The 2026 report records operational changes achieved during 2025. Water supplied to the company's operations fell by approximately 6% compared with 2024, while waste sent to landfill declined by around 5% and recycling increased by approximately 3%.

Sun Chemical also reports approximately 12,000 product carbon-footprint calculations across its portfolio, providing additional data for assessing the environmental characteristics of materials supplied to manufacturers and packaging producers.

The company's operations cover printing inks, coatings, adhesives, pigments and specialist materials used in several industrial sectors. Food packaging forms part of that portfolio, although the operational figures in the report apply to the wider business rather than specifically to food-contact ink and coating production.

Water use varies across chemical and materials manufacturing processes. Depending on the equipment and product, water may be required for formulation, cooling, cleaning and other operating activities, with consumption influenced by the production schedule and the efficiency of associated systems.

Reducing the water supplied to a manufacturing site can reflect changes in operating procedures, process requirements or the volume of activity undertaken. The reported 6% reduction is a company-wide comparison with the previous year and does not independently establish the amount of water saved per tonne of material produced.

The landfill reduction requires a similar distinction. Waste generated by materials manufacturing may include production residues, packaging, cleaning materials and other outputs that must be handled according to their characteristics and applicable regulations.

Sun Chemical reports a 5% reduction in landfill volumes alongside a 3% increase in recycling. The published summary does not supply a complete site-level breakdown linking those changes to individual equipment upgrades or manufacturing processes.

The figures therefore describe changes in the company's reported environmental indicators. Further production-normalised information would be required to determine whether the improvement resulted from greater resource efficiency, changes in output or a combination of operating factors.

Renewable energy investment represents another part of the programme. Sun Chemical identifies projects at its manufacturing sites in Nussdorf, Austria, and Yumbo, Colombia, intended to support reductions in greenhouse gas emissions associated with purchased energy.

These activities relate to Scope 2 emissions, which account for emissions arising from purchased electricity and certain other forms of acquired energy. The calculation depends on the energy used, the relevant reporting methodology and the arrangements through which renewable electricity is obtained or generated.

Sun Chemical has not published individual emissions savings for the two projects in its announcement. Their contribution to the company's total performance cannot therefore be quantified from the available summary.

Product-level assessment has progressed through approximately 12,000 carbon-footprint calculations. Such calculations examine greenhouse gas emissions within defined boundaries, using information about materials, processing and other activities relevant to the assessment.

The figure represents the number of calculations undertaken rather than necessarily the number of distinct products covered. An individual product may require more than one calculation where its formulation, production location or assessment assumptions differ.

For packaging materials, carbon-footprint information can help manufacturers examine the contribution of inks, coatings and adhesives to a finished packaging system. The resulting information is only comparable where the calculation boundaries and methods are sufficiently consistent.

A carbon-footprint assessment is not automatically a complete lifecycle assessment. Other environmental factors, including water requirements, waste, resource depletion and end-of-life performance, may need separate consideration before conclusions can be drawn about the overall impact of an alternative material.

Packaging inks and coatings illustrate the relationship between environmental data and technical performance. Materials must provide the required print quality and manufacturing characteristics while remaining suitable for the intended packaging application.

Food packaging introduces additional constraints because the selection of inks, coatings and adhesives can influence the risk of chemical migration, odour transfer and other interactions that may affect the product.

Sun Chemical expanded its direct food-contact printing portfolio in September with SunPak DFC inPace, a sheetfed offset ink system developed for folding carton applications. The company also introduced additional AquaSafe water-based colour technology for applications requiring suitable food packaging performance.

SunPak DFC inPace is manufactured at the company's Badalona facility, which has dedicated production arrangements for direct food-contact inks and coatings. Its regulatory suitability depends on the specified application and the requirements governing the finished material.

In October, Sun Chemical also introduced an updated SolarFlex FSP UV flexographic ink range for labels, sleeves and packaging. The formulation uses selected raw materials intended to meet the applicable requirements of the German and Swiss ink ordinances while providing low migration performance.

These product developments predate the sustainability report and are separate from its newly disclosed operational results. They provide examples of the packaging materials included within the company's wider development programme.

Ink formulation must be coordinated with the printing and converting process. Viscosity, curing behaviour, substrate characteristics and the conditions used during manufacture influence whether a printed material achieves the required appearance and performance.

Changes intended to improve recycling compatibility or reduce the use of selected materials can introduce further technical considerations. The revised formulation must remain suitable for the printing equipment and the finished packaging construction, while its environmental characteristics must be assessed using appropriate evidence.

The company organises its sustainability programme around five activities: reuse, reduction, renewal, recycling and redesign. These cover operational resource management alongside product formulation and material recovery considerations.

Supplier engagement also features in the report. Sun Chemical received an EcoVadis score of 79, placing it within the top 6% of rated companies and earning a Silver medal under the assessment framework.

The company recorded a global Total Recordable Incident Rate of 1.03 during 2025 and reported no fatalities. It identifies continued implementation of its SunCare Life Saving Commitments as part of its workforce safety programme.

Those safety indicators provide a separate measure of operational performance from the environmental data. Manufacturing sites must manage chemical handling, equipment operation, maintenance and other workplace hazards through procedures appropriate to their processes.

The annual report combines measurable changes in water supply, waste and recycling with developments in product assessment and supplier management. The operating figures cover Sun Chemical's international activities, making them unsuitable for attribution to individual food packaging products or manufacturing facilities without further data.

Future reporting will establish whether the reductions are sustained and how the company's resource performance changes relative to production activity. Its approximately 12,000 product carbon-footprint calculations also provide a basis for more detailed assessment of materials used within packaging systems, subject to the consistency and scope of the underlying methodology.