Trade bodies lobby government regarding inks supply

Ten trade bodies - the Graphics and Print Media Alliance (GPMA) included - have backed the British Coatings Federation in lobbying for the continued supply of ethanol for inks manufacture.

A letter to Nadhim Zahawi MP, Minister for Business and Industry, asks Government to ensure the supply of ethanol for ink manufacture continues. This comes as supplies of ethanol, n-propanol and other raw materials had been prioritised for health, sanitary and pharmaceutical purposes to tackle COVID-19. The trade bodies have asked for a balanced approach to be taken. “Picon and all the members of the GPMA have the personal and business well-being of their members and the industry in the forefront of everything that they are doing at the moment,” said Bettine Pellant, CEO of Picon (a GPMA member). This follows a statement from Tom Bowtell, CEO of the British Coatings Federation (BCF) who said last week: “In the past few days, BCF members have reported that prices for ethanol and n-propanol have risen by up to 350% since last week, adding thousands of pounds a week in additional material costs. There are greater concerns that supplies will dry up completely in future. BCF has already been in touch with officials at BEIS to make them aware of members’ concerns and how these shortages of supply may affect the availability of food packaging and packaging in other critical areas, like pharmaceutical products.”