Like their counterparts around the globe, Latin American ink manufacturers are seeing strong growth in a number of key printing segments, most notably packaging, UV and inkjet inks.
 
Richard Möller, director, hubergroup Brasil, said the food, pharmaceutical, convenience and cosmetic packaging industries are excellent growth opportunities.
 
“The demand for sustainable and secure products is increasing and will continue to increase,” added Möller. “Ink suppliers that are more prepared to offer the technology these markets expect, will have a great advantage. We see also good opportunities in specific ink technologies, like UV and EB curing inks.”
 
Pablo Paduani, VP and head of LATAM region at Siegwerk, said that Siegwerk especially sees growth in the consumption of UV inks for short-runs, customized applications or high-end packaging, which will further drive the ink industry in the region.
 
“When it comes to packaging, flexo, gravure solvent-based and offset conventional drying still represent the major printing processes in the LATAM region,” Paduani said. “We see further development projected in self-adhesive labels, shrink sleeves, laminated tubes, laminated structures and HD flexible printing process. In addition, the speed of flexible packaging printing presses continues to increase – up to 2,000 fpm – which also requires new formulation demands on traditional ink technology.
 
“Furthermore, we expect a general volume switch from conventional UV to migration optimized UV inks in the printing market for this year. LED UV curing will be one of the growth drivers,” Paduani said. “Further expansion of LED UV ink applications will enable printers to use these inks for the full range of products. With our latest launch in this area we’ve added for example the first migration optimized LED UV flexo series for food and pharma packaging to our portfolio. With a combination of best-in-class ink performance, high product safety, and continuous support and guidance, we support our customers in addressing these upcoming trends and meet their individual needs with cutting-edge solutions.”
 
Sergio Pera, director of Toyo Ink Brasil Ltda., said that although printing in Latin America has seen growth at moderate rates, there are still opportunities for more growth from traditional and non-traditional markets.
 
“As a forerunner in the development of LED-UV-curable inks, Toyo Ink has had tremendous success with its series of low-energy, high reactivity UV inks, including markets in Latin America,” said Pera. “The rapid expansion of this market underscores the technology’s cost and performance benefits. To keep up with the rise in global demand, we have been expanding our UV ink production capability in Japan and abroad. We are also seeing a shift even in Latin America from traditional rigid packs to innovative flexible packaging. The key drivers are changing lifestyles and growing focus on convenience and sustainability. As a result of this, demand has increased significantly for our specialty inks used in retort pouches for sauces and dressings, and non-foods such as personal and home care products. We expect the demand for retort packaging technology to grow, especially during hard times, as this type of packaging is both convenient and economical.
 
“In addition, strong demand for functional packaging solutions from the growing flexible packaging market offers tremendous growth opportunities for package printers and ink manufacturers alike,” added Pera. “Whether it be for materials that block UV rays and oxygen penetration, helping to extend the shelf life of packaged foods, or for materials with enhanced barrier performance or lighter weight, we can expect to see more advances in this area in the future. The Toyo Ink Group is also putting to work our technical and processing expertise to develop products that enhance the physical properties and functionality of packaging materials.”
 
“We feel the most significant growth opportunities are within the graphics corrugated market,” said Rob Callif, president/COO, BCM Inks.
 
“As our local customers continue becoming more sophisticated, they are seeking added value,” said Fernando Tavara, president of Sun Chemical Latin America. “As the market leader, Sun Chemical is well positioned with unparalleled capabilities to meet the growing demands in the region and can offer a complete package of solutions for one-stop shopping. The main opportunities are in packaging.”
 
Not surprisingly, digital printing is making significant gains throughout Central and South America.
 
“While analog methods of print are still widely used, there is strong growth potential in digital printing with inkjet presenting many new opportunities,” said Pera. “Moreover, interest is high in digital technology in the global packaging sector, fuelling the development of digital equipment for packaging and labels.”
 
“There is a trend with a growing short run demand driven by brand owners desiring regionalization and personalization as well as effect varnishes and special finishing of their product packaging,” Paduani said. “This trend will generally drive growth of digital printing technologies in packaging as it enables packaging manufacturers to react even faster to specific customer requirements. This also applies for the printing market in Latin America. Digital printing continues to expand with high speed in the region.
 
“We especially see growing demand for application-driven ink systems and inkjet ink customization in particular,” Paduani added. “In this respect, digital printing does not necessarily compete with the analog printing technologies. Instead, it offers printers further opportunities that would not be feasible using any of the conventional printing methods. As one of the global leading ink suppliers, Siegwerk has committed to providing high quality inkjet inks for the labels and packaging market. In a dedicated laboratory at its Technical Center in France, the company is developing new ink solutions – first for labels and as a next step for packaging applications too. We offer superior ink solutions, application expertise and are aware of the demands on ink and packaging materials.”
 
“Of course technological developments are working in favor of digital printing for some printing applications,” said Möller. “In small format and for short runs, digital is becoming dominant. In narrow web applications (small volume packaging and labels), the flexibility of digital printing also brings some attractive benefits. However, printing volume in general is still much higher in offset, flexo and gravure than in any digital printing process.”
 
“The digital market is growing in Latin America, driven by the increasing growth in the use of Chinese manufactured low cost digital printing presses for wide format and super wide formats,” Tavara said. “The UV market in Latin America is growing, though it is still small when compared to other regions of the world. At Sun Chemical, we see many opportunities for growth in all printing segments and other areas like LED UV.”