The Truth About ‘Eco-Unfriendly’ Print: Separating Fact from Fiction

Print has had a rough ride in recent years. It’s been painted as the environmental villain – blamed for deforestation, landfill waste, and squeezing the very air out of our lungs, if you believe the more melodramatic reports. But is print – a centuries-old partner in human progress – really so eco-unfriendly? Or is it just an easy scapegoat in a world gone digital? At Print Lord, nothing winds us up more than seeing paper demonised by lazy headlines. So let’s do what we do best: set the record straight with some hard facts, a bit of perspective, and a healthy dose of common sense.

Where Did the ‘Eco-Unfriendly’ Myth Come From?

The “print is bad for the environment” slogan exploded with the push for paperless offices and the almost religious belief that digital is automatically green. Corporates saw an easy PR win: move to email, declare you’re saving the planet, and everyone feels virtuous. But here’s the rub: most of these claims are as thin as a cheap flyer. Paper and print have a story that goes far deeper – and it’s high time businesses, marketers, and consumers heard it.

Fact One: Sustainable Forestry Is the Print Standard

Modern print, especially in the UK and Europe, relies on paper sourced from sustainably managed forests. This isn’t just good intentions – it’s backed by international schemes like FSC® and PEFC™. For every tree harvested for paper, more are planted (Europe’s forests have grown by over 1,500 football pitches a day over the last 15 years). Far from driving deforestation, the print and paper industry actively supports managed forests, biodiversity, and local economies. Every time you choose responsibly-printed material, you’re often supporting a thriving cycle of regeneration.

Fact Two: Print Is Highly Recyclable and Renewable

Let’s talk recycling. In 2025, over 72% of paper in Europe is recycled. Paper can be made from both virgin and recycled fibres, and processes have been refined so even coated or printed sheets can find a second life. Unlike many digital technologies (full of rare metals, batteries, and plastics), paper is biodegradable. When managed well, your business cards, signage, or promotional posters don’t have to end up as waste – they simply become part of the next cycle.

Fact Three: Digital Isn’t as Green as It Claims

A quick reality check: going digital isn’t an automatic pass to eco-friendliness. Data centres, cloud storage, and endless device manufacture have a colossal (and growing) carbon footprint. That email campaign or online ad? It may be invisible, but it comes with energy use stretching across continents. The print industry has slashed its footprint, with cleaner production methods, renewable energy adoption, and constant scrutiny. It’s far from perfect – but nor is a supposedly ‘paperless’ world.

Fact Four: Print Supports Local and Circular Economies

Print is a deeply local business in many respects – especially at Print Lord. Whether it’s working with UK-based mills or collaborating with local designers and finishers, the supply chain is rooted in real places and real people. Buying print is often a vote for local jobs, fair wages, and businesses who put care before corners. And, as part of the circular economy, every printed item is a potential resource for the next project, not landfill fodder.

Fact Five: Responsible Print Means Responsible Advice

Here’s the Print Lord secret sauce: honest, expert guidance. We’re not interested in churning out landfill – if there’s a solution that saves materials, avoids waste, or simply delivers a smarter result, that’s what we recommend. Our team advises on everything from optimal sheet sizes to recycled stocks, low-impact finishes, and print runs sized to your real needs. If you want your marketing greener, talk to your print partners (preferably ones with a crown in their logo).

Industry Advocacy: Don’t Believe the ‘Paperless’ Lie

Groups like Two Sides are on a one-printing-press crusade to bust anti-print propaganda, and for good reason. Much of the anti-paper PR is fuelled by companies who benefit from digital-only transactions – not from a balanced assessment of impacts. Print, when done right, is part of the sustainability solution, not the problem. And with technology constantly improving, it gets cleaner, greener, and more powerful year after year.

What Does All This Mean for Your Business?

If you’re choosing print, you’re not dooming the planet. You’re likely supporting managed woodland, a recyclable resource, and a local workforce – with a lower footprint than most imagine. Of course, it’s not a guilt-free pass; but it’s time businesses stopped seeing print as the enemy and started demanding better facts (and better results).

The Print Lord Promise: Print with Purpose

For us, print is never just about putting ink on a page. It’s about responsibility, advice, and working with clients to champion the right solution, every time. If you’re worried about eco-credentials – or just keen not to look like a fool when someone brings up “greenwashing” at the next meeting – give us a shout. Our promise: honesty, clarity, and print with purpose.

Let’s put this old myth to bed and start shouting about the real story. Print can be a force for good. Let the digital-only crowd keep peddling emails – we’ll take our job, our forests, and our future seriously, one print job at a time.