KURZ + The Environment

We often receive inquiries about the environmental friendliness of foil. In essence, foil is an exceedingly sustainable print finish, surpassing many industry standards.

To clarify, what is commonly termed "foil" is actually a decorative aluminum transfer material, applied to various substrates such as paper, with hot-stamp foiling being the most prevalent method. This decorative layer is incredibly thin—6,000 times thinner than a human hair. To illustrate, the aluminum used for a single coffee capsule could adorn an area equivalent to five parking spaces if used as transfer material.

The foil layer itself is recyclable, compostable, and free of harmful substances. When applied to a recyclable substrate, the recyclability of the substrate remains unaffected. In fact, during the recycling process, the foil layer is removed when the paper is deinked.

Our foil rolls are supported by a PET carrier sheet, which contains the decorative transfer layer. PET is free of hazardous substances and remains a valuable raw material within the industrial waste cycle, facilitating its reuse.

Through RECOSYS®, surplus carrier materials from the graphic industry can now be transformed into recycled PET (rPET), which is used in the production of plastic bottles, packaging, and various other applications. We are currently the industry's sole manufacturer capable of converting the PET carrier of our ultra-thin transfer decorations into valuable raw materials. Our long-term vision is to recycle all our products to create new carrier materials, enabling us to achieve a truly circular economy where excess materials are no longer discarded.