DIC’s expansion of its low-solvent ECOVART gravure ink brings solvent dependence back into focus for packaging printers. For the Middle East pigment and ink market, the significance lies in the resilience of raw-material sourcing.
What DIC is rolling out
In corporate news published on 9 October 2026, DIC announced the start of ECOVART’s global rollout, with an emphasis on Japan, China and Southeast Asia. The higher-solids, ready-to-print approach is intended to reduce solvent dilution and repeated viscosity adjustments.
The company places procurement concerns and price volatility for naphtha-derived solvents, associated with the Middle East crisis, among the reasons for this approach. The announcement does not confirm availability across Middle East countries. Actual performance will depend on the press, substrate and operating conditions.
Gohar’s perspective: ink costs go beyond pigment prices
For regional printers and ink makers, the development illustrates why cost management cannot be reduced to the price of the colourant. Solvent consumption, press adjustment time, line stoppages and colour repeatability may also affect the final cost of packaging. Competing offers should therefore be compared at equivalent quality and production volumes.
From a technical standpoint, using less solvent is not simply a matter of swapping one pigment grade for another. Compatibility with the resin, dispersion, viscosity and the results of printing and lamination need to be tested in the complete formulation. This is editorial analysis for regional buyers, rather than a guarantee of performance or a recommendation to adopt a product without trials.
Source: DIC / Business Wire release republished by MarketScreener, 9 October 2026. Gohar’s selection and analysis: 15 October 2026.
Conceptual illustration of gravure printing, not a documentary photograph of a DIC product or factory.