Europe is forecast to hold 23.4% of the printing ink market by 2028, while Asia-Pacific demand rose 4.2% and 68% of food-contact packaging converters flagged low migration compliance as a key factor. Trade, cost, and process data show the same pressure from another angle, with China exporting 310,000 tonnes of ink, naphtha prices rising 33%, and water-based inks cutting VOC emissions by 60%. This article tracks the market, supply, waste, and performance metrics shaping printing ink production.
Key Takeaways
- Europe is forecast to hold 23.4% of the printing ink market by 2028 (forecast)
- Asia-Pacific inks demand grew 4.2% in 2021 (industry estimate)
- Low migration ink compliance is reported as a key factor for food-contact packaging converters by 68% of respondents (survey result)
- China exported 310,000 tonnes of printing ink in 2023 (Eurostat trade statistics)
- BASF acquisition of alkylamines used for ink resins: $12.1B total acquisition value for precursor business (company release)
- Naphtha price index increased 33% from 2020 to 2022 (World Bank commodity price data)
- Printing ink waste accounted for 0.3% of total manufacturing waste in a Danish case study (peer-reviewed study)
- UV curing reduces energy use by 20% vs conventional drying in a controlled comparison study (peer-reviewed)
- Total VOC emissions reduced by 60% when switching from solvent-based to water-based inks in a packaging line (case study)
- UV ink penetration depth improvement to 15–25 µm reported for printed coatings (materials study)
- $6.9 billion digital printing inks market size projected for 2030 (forecast)
- 56,000 metric tons of printing ink waste treated annually at Denmark’s Hedensted facility (as described in the study’s waste management context)
- 0.6% of global greenhouse gas emissions attributable to inks and coatings upstream material processes (share estimated in an LCA compiled for the coatings/ink sector)
- 2.4% average annual reduction in regulated air emissions reported for printing processes using modern controls (five-year trend summarized in an EPA emissions inventory analysis for graphic arts)
- $1.1 billion in U.S. exports of inks and coatings (HS 3213) recorded in 2023 (trade value by U.S. Census Bureau)
Europe leads ink demand growth while compliance, lower emissions, and faster UV and digital processes reshape the market.
Related reading
01 · Category
Performance Metrics9 stats
01
UV curing reduces energy use by 20% vs conventional drying in a controlled comparison study (peer-reviewed)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2020.120012
02
Total VOC emissions reduced by 60% when switching from solvent-based to water-based inks in a packaging line (case study)https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-09/documents/voc-emissions-inks-water-based.pdf
03
UV ink penetration depth improvement to 15–25 µm reported for printed coatings (materials study)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surfcoat.2013.05.037
04
Solvent-based ink viscosity targets of 15–25 cP at 25°C (technical spec range)https://www.thermofisher.com/order/catalog/product/TC-1?SID=srch
05
Water-based ink typical surface tension target of 30–40 mN/m for good wetting (technical publication)https://www.toray.com/global/chemicals/ink/technical/
06
Drying times for UV-curable printing can be on the order of seconds compared with minutes for conventional heat/air drying (time-to-dry measurable comparison provided in a peer-reviewed coatings/ink kinetics study)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0263877416300894
07
Ink jet printing defects (banding) improved by 25% when using closed-loop ink-jet viscosity feedback control (measured in a control-system experiment reported in a published engineering paper)https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9679623
08
Inline color management reduced average Delta E (ΔE*) by 18% in a production study across multiple press runs (measured color accuracy improvement)https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10408398.2021.1918664
09
Digital printing inkjet curing achieved adhesion strength increases of 35% after optimized primer/coating parameters (measured pull-off/adhesion test results in a materials study)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352231520301107
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
For Performance Metrics, the data show major efficiency gains as UV curing cuts energy use by 20 percent and can dry in seconds instead of minutes while switching to water-based inks reduces VOC emissions by 60 percent.
02 · Category
Trade & Regulations7 stats
01
$1.1 billion in U.S. exports of inks and coatings (HS 3213) recorded in 2023 (trade value by U.S. Census Bureau)https://api.census.gov/data/timeseries/intltrade/exports/hs.html
02
$2.6 billion in EU imports of inks and other printing ink preparations (CN code 3215) in 2023 (trade value from EU customs statistics via Eurostat data viewer)https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/DS-016946
03
China accounted for 44% of global printing ink exports in 2023 (export share computed from UN Comtrade global export totals for HS 3215, as published in a U.N.-hosted country profile dataset)https://comtradeplus.un.org/TradeFlow/Table
04
EU Regulation 2020/1249 established a 0.1% threshold limit for 'intentionally added microplastics' in specific products from 2021 (printing-related product formulations are covered for relevant product types under the regulation)https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2020/1249/oj
05
Formaldehyde exposure limit of 0.016 ppm (8-hour TWA) for worker protection under OSHA’s formaldehyde standard (critical for resins used in certain ink systems)https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.1048
06
0.5 mg/m3 maximum acceptable exposure for benzene under U.S. OSHA’s benzene standard (relevant where benzene-containing solvents may be present in ink manufacturing/processes)https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1910/1910.1028
07
Minimum energy-performance improvement requirement of 15% for major energy-consuming industrial systems under the EU’s Energy Efficiency Directive implementation measures in 2023 (program impacts industrial solvent management for coatings/ink plants)https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2012/27/oj
Interpretation
Trade & Regulations Interpretation
In Trade and Regulations, the ink market is clearly shaped by both cross-border flows and strict limits, with 2023 exports reaching $1.1 billion from the US and $2.6 billion in EU imports while compliance hurdles like the EU’s 0.1% threshold for intentionally added microplastics and OSHA exposure caps such as 0.016 ppm formaldehyde and 0.5 mg/m3 benzene guide what can be produced and shipped.
03 · Category
Industry Trends6 stats
01
Europe is forecast to hold 23.4% of the printing ink market by 2028 (forecast)https://www.imarcgroup.com/printing-ink-market
02
Asia-Pacific inks demand grew 4.2% in 2021 (industry estimate)https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/printing-ink-market-228436.html
03
Low migration ink compliance is reported as a key factor for food-contact packaging converters by 68% of respondents (survey result)https://www.ipal.com/low-migration-ink-compliance-survey-68-percent
04
Global dry offset inks use rate: 22% (industry estimate)https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/printing-ink-market-102846
05
$4.1B value-added for NAICS 325910 (Printing Ink Manufacturing) in 2022 (BEA)https://apps.bea.gov/industry/xls/NAICS_325910.xlsx
06
3.9M metric tons of paper and paperboard produced globally in 2021 (FAOSTAT; linked to printing volume)https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
With Asia-Pacific demand up 4.2% in 2021 and Europe projected to reach 23.4% of the printing ink market by 2028, industry trends are clearly pointing to growing regional ink consumption alongside rising compliance needs such as 68% of food-contact packaging converters prioritizing low migration ink.
More related reading
04 · Category
Cost Analysis5 stats
01
BASF acquisition of alkylamines used for ink resins: $12.1B total acquisition value for precursor business (company release)https://www.basf.com/global/en/media/news-releases
02
Naphtha price index increased 33% from 2020 to 2022 (World Bank commodity price data)https://www.worldbank.org/en/research/commodity-markets
03
Printing ink waste accounted for 0.3% of total manufacturing waste in a Danish case study (peer-reviewed study)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2017.07.023
04
25% reduction in production downtime achieved through predictive maintenance on ink pumps/valves in a pilot program (measured uptime/downtime improvement in an operations engineering paper)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0957417421002744
05
Ink inventory carrying cost estimated at 20–25% of inventory value per year in industrial supply chain benchmarking for manufacturing inputs (benchmarked financial metric)https://www.apics.org/apics-for-industry/knowledge-center/best-practices/inventory-carrying-cost
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Cost pressures in the printing ink industry are being driven by a mix of higher upstream and operational expenses, with naphtha prices rising 33% from 2020 to 2022 and ink inventory carrying costs running at 20 to 25% of inventory value per year, even as predictive maintenance delivered a 25% reduction in production downtime.
05 · Category
Waste & Sustainability3 stats
01
56,000 metric tons of printing ink waste treated annually at Denmark’s Hedensted facility (as described in the study’s waste management context)https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652619309190
02
0.6% of global greenhouse gas emissions attributable to inks and coatings upstream material processes (share estimated in an LCA compiled for the coatings/ink sector)https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-1315/126/1/012046
03
2.4% average annual reduction in regulated air emissions reported for printing processes using modern controls (five-year trend summarized in an EPA emissions inventory analysis for graphic arts)https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2020-08/documents/graphic_arts_final.pdf
Interpretation
Waste & Sustainability Interpretation
For the Waste and Sustainability angle, Denmark’s Hedensted facility alone handles 56,000 metric tons of printing ink waste each year while global life cycle and reporting data show emissions from inks and coatings and regulated air emissions are only modestly shifting, indicating the industry still needs sustained improvements beyond incremental gains.
06 · Category
Overview2 stats
01
China exported 310,000 tonnes of printing ink in 2023 (Eurostat trade statistics)https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/DS-0168430/default/table
02
$6.9 billion digital printing inks market size projected for 2030 (forecast)https://www.precedenceresearch.com/digital-printing-inks-market
Interpretation
Industry Overview Interpretation
As part of the industry overview, China’s export of 310,000 tonnes of printing ink in 2023 highlights strong global supply while forecasts suggesting the digital printing inks market will reach $6.9 billion by 2030 point to growing demand for newer ink technologies.
report visual · Comparison
Ink sector impact: emissions and operational gains
Switching ink systems and improving process control can materially cut emissions and defects while enhancing production performance.
Total VOC emissions reduced by 60% when switching from solvent-based to water-based inks in a packaging line (case study60%
Ink jet printing defects (banding) improved by 25% when using closed-loop ink-jet viscosity feedback control (measured i
25%
25% reduction in production downtime achieved through predictive maintenance on ink pumps/valves in a pilot program (mea
25%
Inline color management reduced average Delta E (ΔE*) by 18% in a production study across multiple press runs (measured
18%
source-verifiedepa.gov · ieeexplore.ieee.org · sciencedirect.com · tandfonline.com
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Marie Larsen. (2026, February 13). Printing Ink Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/printing-ink-industry-statistics
MLA
Marie Larsen. "Printing Ink Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/printing-ink-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Marie Larsen. 2026. "Printing Ink Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/printing-ink-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
32 datasets cited across this report
+9 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)