Sustainable Printing with Gelato
I partner with Gelato because their emphasis on sustainability is at the core of their business, not greenwashing for sales.
For me, it wouldn't be worth selling prints if my art were harming the environment in the process. Doing so has been on my radar for years, but no print-on-demand platforms seemed good enough. Finally, in 2022, I came across Gelato. Their idea is "moving the world from centralized mass-production to local on-demand production." I am really grateful they exist.
First, there is the concept of local production. Less waste and pollution because the product is created as close as possible to you.
Then, we need to think about the materials themselves. Here are a few excerpts – Gelato's philosophy on materials:
"Our printed paper products and canvases are made from paper and wood from sustainably managed forests with a sustainable forest management system in place."
"Reduce also means working towards a more sustainable value chain and evaluating where we can make better decisions through for example working with partners who use responsibly sourced wood, organic-cotton apparel, and recycled packaging."
"Our new packaging already contains a high percentage of recycled materials and will be moved to 100% recycled in 2023."
"We actively work with production partners that use Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified materials from sustainably managed forests. In 2022, 100% of frames and hangers in the US were FSC certified and 85% of frames and hangers were certified in Europe. When it came to Asia and Oceania, 80% of wood prints and 84% of canvas prints were made of FSC or Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) certified wood."
| You can read an overview of Gelato's sustainability practices here, and also download their 2022 Sustainability Report. |
