Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Beverages has become the first brand to deploy commercially printed labels using a carbon-negative, algae-derived ink - a development that labeling converters, packaging engineers, and automotive-sector supply chain managers are monitoring for potential cross-industry adoption.
Background
Waiākea announced in February 2026 that it had successfully commercialized labels printed with ACTExact UV Black Algae Ink, a UV flexographic ink made from carbon-negative, algae-derived pigment, following a five-year R&D partnership with Living Ink Technologies, ACTEGA, and NextGen Label Group. The ink replaces petroleum-derived carbon black, the conventional pigment used across printing, automotive components, paints, and cosmetics.
More than 33 billion pounds of carbon black are produced globally each year, with applications spanning automotive, apparel, printing inks, and industrial coatings. Traditional carbon black is derived from fossil fuels and has been classified as a Class 2B human carcinogen, according to Living Ink Technologies. The ACTExact formulation draws its pigment from discarded algae biomass - a byproduct of large-scale algae cultivation for food and nutrition applications - processed through pyrolysis in an oxygen-free environment.
A third-party Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) verified the ink's net carbon footprint at -4.16 kg CO₂-equivalent per kilogram of pigment, making it carbon negative through sequestration of atmospheric CO₂ during the algae's growth cycle. According to Living Ink director of partnerships Devon Murrie, the process "turns the pigment itself into a tool for permanent carbon sequestration," contrasting sharply with the emission profile of petroleum-based production.
Compatibility with existing infrastructure is a central commercial argument. ACTExact UV Black Algae Ink was engineered to be fully compatible with conventional UV flexographic printing systems, functioning as a drop-in replacement for standard carbon black-based UV flexo inks. NextGen Label Group validated the formulation through commercial press trials on Waiākea's beverage labels, replacing 100 percent of the brand's previous black ink.
Details
The partnership originated in 2018 when Waiākea began investigating algae-based alternatives to its existing packaging materials. Waiākea and Living Ink Technologies entered a formal joint development path in 2024, when ACTEGA joined the project under a joint development agreement to engineer a commercial-ready UV flexo formulation capable of meeting CPG production standards.
A strategic decision distinguishes this commercialization from many bio-based material launches: Waiākea has chosen to open-source the ink through its partners rather than retain exclusivity or intellectual property rights, making ACTExact UV Black Algae Ink accessible to brands across industries, including small businesses. Ryan Emmons, co-founder and CEO of Waiākea, stated that the ink "finally checks both boxes" on performance standards and carbon-reduction potential - criteria that previous sustainable ink candidates evaluated over the past decade had failed to meet simultaneously.
Living Ink Technologies, headquartered in Berthoud, Colorado, has prior commercial deployments of Algae Black pigment with Nike shoe packaging, Patagonia apparel tags, and Crocs cartons. Living Ink raised $3.5 million in 2023 and a subsequent $3 million round to scale its Algae Black flagship product, with stated plans to increase yields, diversify feedstocks beyond algae - including spent yeast and grain from breweries - and reduce per-unit costs.
For the automotive packaging sector, the technology's emergence intersects with mounting regulatory pressure. Under the EU's Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), Digital Product Passport (DPP) requirements are mandated to begin applying to selected product groups - including automobiles - from 2026. DPPs require structured, verifiable product lifecycle data at the material level, placing ink chemistry, carbon attribution, and recyclability impact within the scope of disclosure obligations. Industry advisors at Labelexpo Europe 2025 cautioned that DPP technical standards "are still developing, with requirements continuing to evolve through 2026," making early material-level LCA verification - such as that attached to ACTExact - a competitive differentiator for converters and brand owners.
Living Ink's Algae Black pigment is listed by the company as suitable for use in plastics, rubbers, foams, inks, coatings, and automotive components, and is described as a drop-in replacement for petroleum-derived carbon black across those substrates. This breadth positions the technology beyond beverage labeling, toward automotive interior components, exterior trim markings, and supplier packaging labels that must align with emerging recycled-content and lifecycle reporting mandates.
Outlook
Waiākea and its partners have indicated plans to scale additional pigment colors beyond black in coming years, expanding the ink's applicability to full-color label production. If the global supply of petroleum-derived black pigment were replaced with Algae Black, Waiākea estimates the environmental benefit would be equivalent to removing approximately 25 million cars from the road annually. For supply chain decision-makers, the near-term question is whether Living Ink's production infrastructure - centered on a demonstration-scale plant in Berthoud, Colorado - can reach the volume and price parity required to serve high-throughput automotive labeling programs. The open-source IP model removes one barrier to adoption; production capacity and certification against automotive-specific durability standards remain the primary variables to watch.
Related coverage: Flexographic Printing Plates to 2035: How Sustainability-Driven Automotive Packaging Is Re-Shaping the Market | Digital Watermarking Scales Up for Automotive PP Recycling
