Sun Chemical added a direct food contact portfolio – SunPak, and AquaSafe color range
The takeoff of SunPak DFC inPace supports Sun Chemical’s leadership in direct food contact (DFC) sheetfed inks, delivering a more sustainable, economical, and visually attractive packaging solution. Concurrently, the addition of a new green pigment to the AquaSafe® water-based ink portfolio enhances design flexibility while meeting European food safety requirements and sustainability objectives.
Launch of SunPak DFC inPace
Sun Chemical is expanding its leadership in direct food contact (DFC) packaging with the launch of SunPak DFC inPace, an advanced sheetfed offset ink system for folding carton applications.
Manufactured at Sun Chemical’s Badalona Center of Excellence for food packaging, DFC inks and coatings benefit from dedicated DFC manufacturing capacity, ensuring consistent quality, strong regulatory compliance, and reliable supply across EMEA.
As Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) regulations drive demand for increasingly sustainable packaging, SunPak® DFC inPace helps packaging manufacturers and brand owners reduce plastic use, improve recyclability, and create engaging consumer experiences without jeopardizing performance.
Powered by Sun Chemical’s proprietary Pace Technology, SunPak® DFC inPace and DFC coatings deliver:
- Direct food contact compliance
- Elimination of plastic laminates and inserts
- Simplified recyclable packaging designs
- High bio-based carbon content verified through Carbon-14 testing
- Reduced material consumption and production steps
- Potential EPR fee reductions
- Enhanced internal package printing for stronger consumer engagement
AquaSafe®: Next-Generation Water-Based DFC Inks
Sun Chemical also expanded its AquaSafe® water-based DFC ink portfolio with nine new base colors, delivering a wider color gamut, improved vibrancy, and greater color precision. Designed for direct food contact applications, AquaSafe inks are compatible with paper, paperboard, flexible films, and aluminum foil, enabling brands to replace plastic barriers with increasingly sustainable packaging solutions whilst maintaining food safety and performance. 
Expanded Color Gamut, including an innovative new green. Both SunPak® DFC inPace and AquaSafe® now feature an extended color gamut, including a newly developed food-compliant green pigment. The enhanced palette delivers greater design freedom, stronger color impact, and improved print performance for both exterior and interior package graphics. To accelerate color development, Sun Chemical integrated GamutViewer® into SunColorBox, enabling brand owners and packaging manufacturers to verify color achievability before production. This reduces rework, lowers waste, and improves manufacturing efficiency.
