How Do You Choose Flexographic Ink? Don't Look Only at the Awards

Because Flint Group has positioned Flexocure LEAP as a solventless, 100% solids UV ink system, and its product announcement explicitly addresses VOC emissions and waste from solvent evaporation

VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) are organic substances that may evaporate into the air during printing or drying. In the Flexocure LEAP case, a solventless, 100% solids UV ink system means the ink is not thinned with solvents. After application, it is cured into a film with UV (ultraviolet), leaving the solid content on the substrate

The British Coatings Federation (BCF) is an organization that recognizes innovation in the UK's inks and coatings industry. On September 21, 2026, Flint Group announced that Flexocure LEAP had been selected as one of three finalists in the 2026 BCF Awards Sustainable Innovation category. The ceremony is scheduled for November 12 at the Queens Hotel in Leeds. See Flint Group announcement: Flexocure LEAP shortlisted among the top sustainable innovations at the British Coatings Federation Awards

I read this as a signal that ink suppliers are starting to put emissions, material use, and packaging applications into the same product brief. That gives brand procurement teams concrete fields to question. An award is not a procurement decision

It removes the solvents that would otherwise evaporate during drying and uses UV curing instead to form a film after Flexocure LEAP is applied to the substrate. That is why the product description emphasizes that all applied ink stays on the substrate

There are three differences to check on the production floor

・On the solvent side, Flexocure LEAP's product announcement says it removes VOC emissions and avoids the waste caused by solvent evaporation

・On the curing side, 100% solids keeps the applied ink on the substrate. Actual line speed and curing conditions still need to be confirmed on your own equipment

・On the packaging side, Flint Group presents resin technology, raw-material selection, and performance suited to demanding press conditions as factors behind improved migration safety for indirect food contact packaging

When I am on the production floor, I do not ask only whether an ink is environmentally friendly. I ask whether this ink, on the specified substrate, at the specified line speed, and after post-processing, can deliver color, adhesion, and documentation that are ready for delivery. Don't rush to switch inks

Brands need to include ink in ESG (environmental, social, and governance) procurement because ink affects packaging-emissions claims, indirect food-contact applications, and whether the printer can deliver consistently. Flexocure LEAP's shortlisting puts these questions in the same procurement context

Migration safety is the requirement for managing the risk of ink components migrating from packaging materials into their contents. The focus is on the application, raw materials, and records from the actual process. Flexocure LEAP's product description mentions indirect food contact packaging applications. That does not mean a brand has achieved compliance simply because it was shortlisted for an award

I would require the procurement specification to spell out three things

・The intended use and whether it involves indirect food contact packaging applications

・Whether the migration safety and raw-material documents match the product batch

・Whether trial-print records can demonstrate Flexocure LEAP's curing, adhesion, color, and delivery requirements

Brand communications need to stay measured. You can say that Flexocure LEAP is a solventless, 100% solids UV ink system. You cannot turn its shortlisting into a claim that the entire package has zero environmental impact

Run a small trial print first and keep traceable records before deciding whether Flexocure LEAP should become a standard ink. The product's reference to demanding press conditions still cannot replace validation at each plant

I use the "Mai Strategy Three-Gate Print Submission Check" to turn brand requirements into production-floor records

・1. State the use first: substrate, packaging structure, indirect food contact applications, and subsequent lamination or coating

・2. Run the process next: on a narrow-web press, verify UV curing, adhesion, color, and post-processing, not just the proof

・3. Gather the documents: put migration safety, raw-material declarations, batch details, and trial-print results into the acceptance file

Brands can bring the three gates into discussions with MINDS when defining print-submission specifications. In the end, actual printing conditions determine whether Flexocure LEAP is suitable. Start with a small trial print

The next test is whether the product's claims line up across a real production line, the packaging application, and the brand's messaging. Flint Group Flexocure LEAP making the final three points to a direction, but it does not validate the product for the brand

I would treat the BCF Awards ceremony on November 12, 2026, as a point to watch, not a procurement deadline. Brands should track three things

・What practical difference does Flexocure LEAP's solventless, 100% solids design make for your packaging structure?

・Can the migration safety documents for indirect food contact use be connected to the printer's process records?

・Can sustainability claims be translated into procurement specifications, so design, printing, and brand teams all use the same language for the same thing?

In the brand projects I work on, the most common mistake is treating "sustainable ink" as a single field. Ink, substrate, curing, post-processing, and documentation have to be assessed together. Otherwise, after the material is changed, the delivery risk may simply show up somewhere else

・Flexocure LEAP's place among the three finalists is a procurement signal, not a substitute for a production-line trial

・The value of 100% solids is that the applied ink stays on the substrate. Brands still need to verify the actual application

・For indirect food contact packaging, migration safety documents, substrate, curing, and post-processing need to be reviewed together

・Communication about sustainable ink ultimately comes back to one ink pail, one press line, and one acceptance record

On the manufacturing side, start by putting Flexocure LEAP through tests on the actual substrate, curing setup, and post-processing steps. On the design side, specify the packaging use and contact scenario clearly at handoff, so the printer has less to guess. AI (artificial intelligence) can organize ink applications, document versions, and trial-print results into searchable fields to help procurement identify missing items, but it should not decide whether the process passes. SaaS (Software as a Service) should record batches, substrates, and validation results, so brands can trace the impact of each ink change. Brands can discuss how to turn the "Mai Strategy Three-Gate Print Submission Check" into a procurement form and print-submission workflow with the Mai Strategy Knowledge Academy consulting team

・Flint Group: Flexocure LEAP Shortlisted for the British Coatings Federation Sustainable Innovation Award