Celebrate Earth Day 2010 - Grow The Forests. Use More Paper.

"When people use more paper, suppliers plant more trees. If we want bigger commercial forests, then we should use more paper, not less. Our policies should directly protect important wildlife habitats, not try to reduce our demand for paper."

- Edward L. Glaeser, Professor of Economics, Harvard University

Wood is a renewable resource. It provides useful products while preserving the environment and maintaining the social and cultural values attached to forests. Consider these facts:

• Every day the forest products industry plants more than 1.7 million trees in the U.S.
• Today, there are 12 million more acres of forests in the U.S. than in 1987.
• Since the 1940’s, annual growth of new trees has always exceeded the number cut down. By 1992, tree growth outpaced harvest by 34% and the volume of wood in the forest was 360% more than in 1920.

In the next 30 years, the U.S. could lose 44 million acres of forest to development, according to the USDA. When you use paper, you help keep trees growing.*


Happy Earth Day!

Myths on Environmentally-Responsible Printing (and the Truths from Green Ink)

As more and more consumers become aware of the earth's dwindling resources and the deleterious effects of industrialization on the environment, companies and businesses from all sectors are pressured to step up their efforts on being green. To many, the switch to environmentally-responsible printing practices does not seem easy. Is your company hindered by false truths and misconceptions? Let Southeastern Printing's Green Ink program show you that printing green and boosting marketing do not have to be mutually exclusive.

Myth #1: To be green is the responsibility of the printer alone
Green Ink believes in empowering its clients. Your company plays a crucial role in ensuring that your printed materials stay green, from the drawing board to the printing press, all the way to your customers’ homes. Guided by expert advice from Green Ink, you can customize the design and look of your printed materials such that the entire printing process produces minimum waste and the output remains recyclable.

Myth #2: All recycled papers are the same and all virgin fiber papers are bad
Recognizing that each marketing strategy requires a tailored approach, Green Ink offers you several environmentally-responsible options in paper selection. You can choose from different types of recycled paper, containing anywhere from 10 to 100% recycled material. Even if you decide to use paper from virgin fiber, you won't contribute to deforestation, as long as the paper is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

Myth #3: It's enough to use environment-friendly paper and ink
In order to create a lasting impact, Green Ink's efforts do not stop at using paper from sustainable sources and vegetable-based inks with low VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds). Paperless quoting and proofing are the norm. Packaging of deliverables is scrutinized. Among other things, Southeastern Printing has invested in a $75,000 machine that more effectively compacts the trimmings from the plastic beverage labels that it prints. Green Ink believes in going the extra mile for our earth, and so should you.

Myth #4: Green is expensive
How can reduce-reuse-recycle be more costly than brand-new-all-the-time? Choosing Green Ink assures you that experts will guide you in tweaking your labels and promotional materials, striking that balance between your green commitment and your budget, without sacrificing your company's branding. Green Ink also shows you how to get indirect savings from less to zero excess print materials and reduced expenses for fuel, postage, and waste handling.

Myth #5: Green has lost its marketing advantage in today's economy
Despite the recession, the 2009 Cone Consumer Environmental Survey reveals that 34% of Americans are more likely to buy products that are environmentally responsible. Consumers are looking for green products, and this is not likely to change as more people are beginning to accept the inconvenient truth. By sharing Green Ink's commitment to environmentally-responsible printing, you can attract a definite portion of the market and gain that Green edge over your competitors.

“Green” you deserve a gold star for your neologistical transformation

A word can have many definitions. Its meaning also evolves and changes as the cultures who use them do. Slang words come and go out of the pop culture. Words take on new meaning as the world around it expands. A simple example of one such neologism (new meaning for an existing word) would be the word “mouse”. Who would have thought to name the palm sized clicker your moving around after a furry little rodent. (also don’t they go “squeak, squeak”, not “click, click”. Moving on…. Words can be defined hundreds of ways. For example “set” has 464 definitions in the Oxford Dictionary. On its way there, a word that has lexicographers (people who write dictionaries) running out of room for more entries is “Green”. Its a verb, its a noun, its an adjective, no its GREEN. This word is an antonym to itself. If you are looking Green, you are sick to your stomach (entry 7a). Yet it also represents fresh and lushness (entry 2a). If an employee is new and poor in knowledge, they may be considered Green (9a). Yet it’s the color of money and prosperity. An additional entry that’s received so much press it may be lined up for its own star on Hollywood Blvd. “Green”. Sorry Paris, it received more Google hits.

Main Entry: 1 green
10 a often capitalized : relating to or being an environmentalist political movement b: concerned with or supporting environmentalism c: tending to preserve environmental quality (as by being recyclable, biodegradable, or nonpolluting)

The association of being Green in the sense Merriam-Webster defines hasn’t always been considered the hip, posh way to go. Poor 10a received the stereotype of something more like tree hugging do gooding patchouli wearing hippies, etc. etc. Those tree huggers have not left their precious green in the 60’s. They found Green in being Green. “Green is the new black”. Green people today wear free trade organic clothing, they drive cars that don’t use up the kids college fund to get to and from work, they video conference and save the flights for the real important trips, like vacations, they’ve found balance. Balance of enjoying what the world has to offer by making sure it is here for the next generation.

The neologism for the Green of old is now the Green of:
efficiency,
resourcefulness,
effectiveness,
ingenuity,
energy efficient,
cost saving,
socially responsible.

Have an addition to the list? Post us what you think.

Environmentally-Friendly Label Printing...Reduce your carbon footprint.

Today, Southeastern Printing provides labels to leading companies, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, Dr. Pepper, 7-UP, and others.

We produce multi-color labels on polypropylene or paper substrates with in-line film lamination, a highly specialized technology in which we excel. Southeastern's flexography lines feature Cyrel plating and today's most advanced Comco presses, achieving industry-leading makeready speeds with image detail and registration of exceptional quality.

Feeling environmentally challenged?

• Your customers want green
• You need to be green
• We can help you become green

We can help you improve your brand name by improving your green image.

• Surveys indicate your customer will choose eco-friendly products over non-sustainable items, given the same price.

Reduce your carbon footprint.

• Demonstrate your commitment to sustainability with Green ink ®.
• By placing the Green ink ® logo on your label, you’re displaying your environmental responsibility to your customers.

Your labels are produced by an all-encompassing, eco-friendly manufacturing process.

• All-digital prepress operations
• Computer-to-plate – eliminates film and chemical waste from our plate-making process
• No solvents are used in our flexographic printing process
• Only water-based inks are used to print our labels, and unused inks are recycled and used again
• Anilox Roll Cleaner – non-toxic, reusable and sustainable
• Auto Splicer – decreases downtime and waste material

Our commitment to recycling and reusing is demonstrated by the following:

• All film trimmings are recycled (almost 900,000 pounds of film in 2007)
• 100% of suppliers packaging is sent back to be reused, including pallets and their
• component parts, including wood end boards, plastic core caps and aluminum braces
• Old pallets are delivered to a company specializing in refurbishing them into new pallets
• Dull titanium slitter blades are melted down to create new blades
• Chemical drums and containers are sent back to the supplier to be reused
• All boxes – including ink, plate and other materials – are returned to suppliers to be reused

Sustainability and carbon footprint are not just industry buzz words – they represent the corporate culture at Southeastern Printing. We are moving boldly forward with plant-wide initiatives that bring about real and measurable environmental change.