What's the difference between plain paper and metallized paper?
The demand on the part of consumers and regulators for eco-friendly materials has led to a rise in the number of paper-based products - after all, paper is considered to be one of the only truly sustainable materials. What’s more, the possibility of combining different mixes, ingredients and woods makes a paper a highly versatile material. Metallized paper is, as its name suggests, paper - but with a twist. Let’s take a look at the differences between the two and the extra benefits of metallized paper compared to plain.
Manufacturing
People tend to be under the impression that metallized paper is similar to aluminum foil. It’s true that metallized paper’s silvery reflective surface can look like aluminium, but that’s where the resemblance ends.
Our products are based on plain paper, upon which we vaporize a very thin layer of aluminium and then post-coat to give it abrasion resistance and a printable surface. This means that metallized paper retains the texture and feel of paper, with a shiny metallic surface that offers much in terms of design and functionality.
Barrier properties
Plain paper has many advantages: lightness, versatility and adaptability to different formats are some of them. One thing it doesn’t really offer, though, is strong barrier properties: plain paper has little chance of standing up to moist or greasy products for more than a few minutes at a time.
However, using paper-based materials doesn’t mean having to sacrifice essential functionality, such as the barrier properties that are essential for applications such as food packaging. While our papers retain the light weight of their base material, their metallized coating forms a barrier against light, moisture, vapour and odour that depending on the end-use application can be a sustainable (metallized paper = a recyclable mono-material) alternative to multilayer alternatives, such as products with PE layers.
Specialized support
Switching to sustainable packaging is often a lengthy process and one which isn’t as simple as people outside the industry think it is. While all players in the supply chain are usually keen to switch to recyclable materials, machinery, set up, paper type, speed, functionality and runnability – amongst others – all need to be considered. As part of any switch to a sustainable material, our Research and Development team will consider several different factors with a brand’s trusted printers and converters.
Want to know if metallized paper is the right option for your company? Don’t hesitate to get in touch!