The Guide to Sustainable Card Printing: How to Ditch PVC for Good

The Environmental Cost of Traditional PVC Printing

The problem with "recycled PVC" is simple: it merely delays the inevitable. Most recycled PVC cannot be recycled again and eventually lands in incinerators, releasing toxic dioxins.

The numbers are stark. A single PVC card generates 20-50g of CO2e across its lifecycle. Multiply that by millions of cards annually, and you're looking at massive environmental waste from a product with a brief lifespan.

enviricard changes the equation. At just 11g of CO2e per card, switching 100,000 cards saves approximately 1-2 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to driving a car 5,000 miles. Plus, enviricard cards are EN13432 certified for industrial composting and recyclable in standard paper mills. When they reach end-of-life, they decompose within months rather than lasting 400 plus years in a landfill.

How Sustainable Card Printing Works

The magic lies in the material: FSC-certified Invercote paperboard paired with a bio-based coating. This coating mimics the surface tension of plastic, allowing dye-sublimation ribbons to bond directly to the paper through heat without melting, smudging, or warping.

The result is a card that looks and feels professional, resists water damage, and maintains print quality. The texture itself becomes a selling point: event attendees and employees notice they're holding something sustainable, yet high quality.
 

Printer Compatibility: Use Sustainable Paperboard in your DTC Printers

Direct-to-card (DTC) printers, the standard desktop card printers most companies already own, work seamlessly with Enviricard.

Top Compatible Printers:

• Magicard (Rio Pro 360 and 600): Best for vibrant color accuracy. Magicard has added enviricard profiles to recent driver updates, making setup straightforward.
• Evolis Primacy 2: Excellent for sharp monochrome output. When using the BlackFlex ribbon (RCT219NAAA), text and barcodes appear crisp and professional on paperboard.
• Matica (MC110, MC210, MC310): Reliable performers across the board.
• Zebra (ZC100, ZC300): Compact and user-friendly for basic ID needs.

Configuration Tips for the Best Printing Results

1. Heat Settings: Reduce printhead power by 10-15 percent in your driver settings. Too much heat warps the paperboard.
2. Design Philosophy: Embrace white space. Solid background colors (flood fills) absorb ink unevenly on paper. Logos and text on white backgrounds not only look professional but also save ribbon costs.
3. Ribbon Selection: YMCKO color ribbons work on Enviricard, but monochrome black (K) delivers crisper results for ID numbers and barcodes. The choice depends on your design priorities.
4. Storage: Unlike PVC, paperboard is moisture-sensitive before printing. Store cards in cool, dry conditions.

Where Sustainable Cards Make the Biggest Impact

Event badges are the perfect use case. Why issue a permanent plastic card to someone attending a one to two day conference? enviricard eliminates this plastic waste conundrum entirely. Visitor badges, temporary credentials, and high-volume one-time-use applications all benefit from both the environmental and economic advantages that come with enviricards.

Membership and gift cards tell a different story. The texture and weight of paperboard create a premium, eco-conscious feel that builds brand loyalty and trust with consumers. Customers perceive sustainability as a mark of quality.

Save Money and Carbon: The ROI of Switching to Paperboard

Financially, enviricard is competitive with high-end PVC and PET cards, often cheaper. Factor in the reputational value: “The only independently certified alternative to plastic cards" enviricards become a marketing asset, appealing to environmentally conscious consumers and building a strong connection with stakeholders.

For HR departments printing thousands of ID cards annually, the carbon footprint reduction is not only measurable and reportable, but also provable. It's a tangible commitment to sustainability.

Take the next step

Switching to sustainable cards for your DTC printing doesn't require hardware investments or an operational overhaul. It requires a different card material and minor configuration adjustments to your existing printer.

The transition from PVC to paperboard is straightforward, cost-effective, and impactful. If your organisation overprints cards, this year is the moment to make the switch.

Ready to test it yourself? Get in touch today for a quote and see how it performs in your Magicard, Evolis, or Matica printer. The future of card printing is sustainable.