Press release submitted on behalf of Toyo Ink Europe.
Toyo Ink Europe N.V., Niel, Belgium, the European-based energy-curing inks division of Japan’s artience Group, has rolled out a complete lineup of ultraviolet (UV) curable inks that meet strict migration limits as mandated under the German Printing Ink Ordinance (GIO). Over the past year, the company’s GIO-compliant ink portfolio of UV and UV/LED flexographic inks and UV offset inks has been tested through and through to deliver food-safe, low-migration and regulation-ready inks, without compromising on print quality, productivity or substrate versatility. These milestones underscore Toyo Ink Europe’s commitment to meet the GIO and other key safety benchmarks in Europe well before they become fully mandatory.
“We’re extremely proud of being one of the first ink makers to bring a GIO-compliant UV and LED inks to market,” says Ismail Yilmaz, general manager sales & corporate strategy, Toyo Ink Europe. “Our GIO-compliant UV flexo ink systems were originally launched in June 2025, followed by the UV offset ink rollout at Labelexpo Europe in September 2025. To achieve these early breakthroughs, our analytical and regulatory teams collaborated closely with five different developmental partners to ensure our inks comply with the most rigorous performance and safety standards – and on a variety of presses and substrates. While the GIO enforcement date is now set for January 2027, we feel well-positioned to support converters in making an early transition to print compliantly and in gaining a competitive advantage in a rapidly evolving market.”
Toyo Ink Europe’s GIO-compliant ink lineup consists of specialized, low-migration and low-energy (UV/LED) solutions designed for food-safe packaging. In flexo printing, Steraflex UV offers high color strength, fast UV curing, excellent printability and broad substrate compatibility, making it ideal for labels and packaging on both non-absorbent substrates such as PE, PP and PET as on absorbent ones such as paper and board. Steraflex GIO LED extends these benefits to LED-UV flexo printing, providing energy-efficient curing, minimal odor, and consistent, vibrant print results across a wide range of substrates.
In offset printing, Steraboard UV and Steraplast UV bring GIO compliance to paper, board and non-absorbent substrates, combining fast UV curing, high gloss, strong adhesion and low migration. Meanwhile, the LED Offset Food series was renamed EkoPro LED, reinforcing its role as a LED GIO-compatible offset solution.
About Toyo Ink Europe
Toyo Ink Europe N.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of Japan-based artience Group, is a leading manufacturer of LED, UV and EB inks and coatings for the global label, packaging and printing markets. Originally founded in 1938, the company, then Arets Graphics, was acquired by artience Co., Ltd. (then Toyo Ink SC Holdings) in 2013. Today, Toyo Ink Europe specializes in developing high-speed curing and low migration solutions for label printing, flexible packaging and carton packaging. With operations in 10 countries, the company maintains its head office and a state-of-the-art manufacturing and research facility in Niel, Belgium.
For more information, visit artience-toyoinkeurope.eu/.