Custom Printed Greaseproof Paper

What does custom printed greaseproof paper include?

It includes every branded wrap and liner on a foodservice line, usually in 28-45 gsm paper with the print on the outer face as an all-over repeat pattern.

The same paper family is used across several jobs on a foodservice line:

If the food goes into a pocket rather than a flat sheet, the better starting point is usually custom printed paper food bags, which covers burger sleeves, döner bags and fries bags.

Which wrap material does your menu need?

For most hot burgers, sandwiches and fried food, a fluorine-free greaseproof or grease-resistant paper in the 30-40 gsm range is the default. Move to a PE-laminated, foil or insulated wrap only when the food is very wet, very hot or spends a long time in delivery, and accept the recyclability cost that comes with it.

"Greaseproof paper" is used loosely in the trade. Buyers comparing quotations often discover that two suppliers quoting "greaseproof" are offering quite different materials. The table below separates the main options. For a deeper comparison, including parchment and butcher paper, see greaseproof vs parchment vs wax paper vs deli paper.

True greaseproof paper

Greaseproof paper is made by refining chemical pulp for much longer than normal, which fibrillates the fibres and lets them pack into a dense sheet with very few pores. Oil cannot easily find a path through, so the barrier is built into the paper itself. Historically, many grades were boosted with fluorochemical treatments; current EU and US supply has moved to fluorine-free greaseproof, and that is what a buyer should specify. In German this paper is often called Pergamentersatz ("parchment substitute"), which explains why buyers sometimes ask for "parchment" when they mean greaseproof.

Grease-resistant papers with barrier coatings

Machine-glazed (MG) papers can be made grease resistant with a water-based dispersion coating or a surface treatment applied on the paper machine or offline. The result can match or exceed true greaseproof on oily foods, and some coatings also improve water resistance. The trade-off is that performance depends heavily on the coating, the coat weight and how well it survives a crease. For the chemistry behind these barriers, see barrier coatings for paper packaging.

PE-laminated wrap

A thin polyethylene layer on paper stops grease and moisture almost completely, which is why it is common for very saucy or juicy products and long delivery times. Under the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive (EU) 2019/904 and its 2021 Commission guidelines, paper with a plastic coating counts as a plastic-containing product, which brings extended producer responsibility and, in Germany, the single-use plastic fund levy for packets and wrappers. Under the PPWR, the Commission's guidance notice of 5 June 2026 (C(2026) 3702), which is not legally binding, treats paper-based packaging with 5 % or more plastic as covered by the Annex V restrictions from 1 January 2030, which matters for wraps used for food eaten on HORECA premises.

Wax-coated deli paper

In the US, "deli paper" usually means dry wax paper: a light sheet with wax driven into the fibres, so it does not feel greasy and does not transfer wax onto hands. Wet wax papers carry wax on the surface and give a stronger moisture barrier. Wax is a moisture barrier more than a grease barrier, and it melts, so it is a cold-to-warm counter material rather than an oven or very hot fat material.

Silicone-coated baking paper

Baking paper (often sold as "parchment paper" in the US) is a greaseproof or vegetable parchment base with a silicone release coating, typically rated for oven use around 220-230 °C depending on the grade. It is the right choice for baking and tray lining, but its cost and end-of-life profile make it a poor choice for wrapping burgers.

Foil and honeycomb insulated wraps

Insulated sandwich wraps laminate aluminium foil to tissue or paper, and honeycomb versions are embossed to hold a layer of air. They keep breakfast sandwiches and hot subs warm far longer than paper alone. They are mainly a US format, cost more per unit and are difficult to recycle, so they make sense only where heat retention is a defined operational requirement.

How do you specify grease resistance?

Specify grease resistance with a KIT rating (TAPPI T559 or ISO 16532-2), where higher numbers on the 1-12 scale mean stronger oil repellency, and add a Cobb value if the food is wet. A typical burger wrap specification asks for a mid-to-high KIT level, but the right figure depends on the paper type and the food.

The KIT test applies twelve numbered test solutions of castor oil, toluene and heptane to the paper surface. Each step is more aggressive than the last; the KIT rating is the highest-numbered solution that does not darken the sheet within the test time. Cobb (ISO 535 / TAPPI T441) measures how many grams of water a square metre of paper absorbs in a set time, so a lower Cobb value means less water uptake.

Two cautions matter for wraps. First, KIT measures surface repellency, not the time it takes hot fat to pass through a fold, so a high KIT number does not guarantee a stain-free burger after ten minutes in a delivery bag. Second, true greaseproof and coated papers can score differently on KIT while performing similarly on real food. The most useful specification combines a KIT target with a food test on the actual product. KIT test and grease resistance ratings explained covers the method, the twelve solutions and how to read supplier data sheets.

Indicative starting points (always confirm with a food trial):

What gsm should a burger wrap be?

Most printed burger wraps are specified at roughly 30-40 gsm. Lighter grades from about 28 gsm suit deli sheets and dry products; heavier grades of 40-45 gsm give more stiffness and opacity for basket liners, tray liners and heavy, saucy products.

Grammage on its own does not set grease resistance. A 32 gsm true greaseproof sheet may hold out oil better than a 40 gsm uncoated MG sheet. What grammage does change is fold behaviour, how much the print shows through, how stiff a liner sits in a basket, and the cost per thousand sheets.

For how greaseproof sits among other packaging papers, see packaging paper grades explained.

Sheets, rolls or reels?

Choose cut sheets for hand-wrapping at the counter, rolls for dispensers where staff tear or cut a variable length, and reels when a wrapping machine or automated line is involved. The choice affects print layout, packing, storage space and how much paper each item uses.

Sheet sizes are specific to each menu. Common examples include sheets around 30 x 30 cm to 35 x 40 cm for burgers, 12 x 12 in and 15 x 15 in basket liners in the US, and tray liners close to the tray footprint. Burger wrap and basket liner sizes walks through sizing by product and fold. Where the sheet covers a whole serving tray rather than wrapping food, it is specified separately as custom printed tray liners, usually on a heavier paper.

How is greaseproof paper printed?

Printed wraps are usually produced by flexographic printing with water-based, food-contact-suitable inks on the outer (non-food) side, in one to four spot colours, as a repeat pattern with modest ink coverage. Low coverage keeps the thin sheet flat, limits set-off and odour, and keeps the barrier intact.

Thin, dense paper is a demanding substrate. Heavy solids can wrinkle or curl the sheet, slow drying and increase the risk that ink transfers from the printed face to the food-contact face when the reel or stack is under pressure (set-off). EU Good Manufacturing Practice Regulation (EC) 2023/2006 explicitly requires that inks on the non-food side do not transfer to the food-contact side through set-off or through the substrate. That is why experienced converters design wrap artwork as open patterns, logo repeats or line illustrations rather than full-bleed photographs.

Points to settle at artwork stage:

• Which face touches food, and confirmation that print sits on the other face
• Number of colours and whether exact Pantone matching is needed on a translucent, off-white or brown substrate
• Coverage: an open pattern rather than large solids
• Repeat length and logo spacing relative to the cut sheet or tear length
• Whether the design needs to register to each sheet or can run freely

Printing on greaseproof paper covers inks, coverage limits, low-migration options and the German Printing Ink Ordinance. For a comparison of printing processes across packaging types, see flexo vs offset vs gravure vs digital printing, and for colour expectations, Pantone vs CMYK in packaging.

Is printed greaseproof paper PFAS-free?

It should be, and buyers should ask for it in writing. In the EU, Regulation (EU) 2025/40 (the PPWR) restricts PFAS in food-contact packaging from 12 August 2026, and in the US PFAS grease-proofing agents have left the FDA-authorised market and many states ban intentionally added PFAS in food packaging.

The PPWR limits apply from 12 August 2026 with no sell-off period: 25 ppb for any single PFAS measured by targeted analysis, 250 ppb for the sum of targeted PFAS, and 50 ppm for all PFAS including polymeric PFAS; where total fluorine exceeds 50 mg/kg, the material supplier must on request give the packaging manufacturer or importer proof of whether the fluorine comes from PFAS or from non-PFAS substances. Greaseproof wraps, burger boxes and moulded fibre are among the product types most affected.

In the US, the FDA announced on 28 February 2024 that PFAS grease-proofing substances were no longer being sold for food-contact use, and in January 2025 it determined that 35 related food contact notifications were no longer effective. State laws in New York, California, Washington, Vermont, Connecticut, Colorado, Maryland, Minnesota and others restrict intentionally added PFAS in food packaging, with effective dates between late 2022 and 2026 (Maine's prohibition for plant-fibre food packaging applies from 25 May 2026). A total organic fluorine threshold (commonly 100 ppm) is used by several states and by BPI for compostability certification.

For a wrap specification, this means:

• Request a statement that no PFAS are intentionally added
• Ask for total fluorine test data from the paper mill or an accredited lab, referenced to the EU 50 ppm or US state thresholds as relevant
• Check that the grease barrier comes from the paper structure or a fluorine-free coating

The full regulatory picture, including test methods and barrier alternatives, is in PFAS-free food packaging: rules and barrier alternatives.

Which food-contact documents should a wrap supplier provide?

For the EU and UK, expect a Declaration of Compliance referencing Regulation (EC) 1935/2004 and GMP Regulation (EC) 2023/2006, with paper assessed against BfR Recommendation XXXVI as the usual benchmark and Regulation (EU) 10/2011 covering any plastic layer. For the US, expect confirmation that components comply with the relevant FDA provisions, typically 21 CFR 176.170 for paper contacting aqueous and fatty food.

Paper and board have no harmonised EU-specific measure, so BfR Recommendation XXXVI has become the de facto reference that buyers and food-safety auditors ask for. A PE-laminated wrap adds the plastics regulation and its overall migration limit of 10 mg/dm² for the plastic layer. Printing inks are covered by GMP rules and, for the German market, by the German Printing Ink Ordinance, which applies from 1 January 2027. The documents a chain's quality team usually requests are covered in food-contact packaging compliance in the EU, UK and US.

Can greaseproof wraps be recycled or composted?

Clean, fluorine-free greaseproof paper is a fibre product and can be repulped in many paper mills, but used wraps are often too contaminated with food and fat for household paper recycling. PE-laminated, foil and silicone-coated wraps are harder still. Compostability depends on certification of the specific grade, not on the word "greaseproof".

Under the PPWR, only a short list of packaging types (such as tea and coffee bags and fruit stickers) is required to be compostable; other packaging, including wraps, must meet recyclability performance grades from 2030. Environmental claims on printed wraps need care: from 27 September 2026, Directive (EU) 2024/825 bans generic claims such as "eco-friendly" without recognised evidence. Is greaseproof paper recyclable or compostable? goes through each material and market, and recyclable, compostable and biodegradable packaging claims covers wording.

In the UK, packaging EPR adds a cost dimension that is separate from what councils collect. The recyclability assessment methodology (RAM) used to modulate pEPR fees rates greaseproof, siliconised and waxed paper, including parchment and baking paper, red (RAM v1.1, and still red under RAM 2027 for packaging supplied from 1 January 2027, which defines it as fibre densification or a continuous wax or silicone layer). Red pays the highest modulated fee: £250 per tonne against £190 for green paper and board in PackUK's illustrative 2026/27 fees. The fee falls on the UK producer, usually the chain or its importer. Details are in UK packaging regulations.

Wrap, bag or box: which format for which order?

A wrap is the lowest-cost, lowest-volume way to brand a burger or sandwich, and it is fast to apply at the counter. A box protects shape and stacking in delivery; a bag or sleeve suits hand-held items that need an open end. Many chains use more than one format across dine-in, takeaway and delivery.

Wraps also take up a fraction of the storage space of boxes, which matters for small kitchens and food trucks. The structured comparison, including speed of service, delivery performance and per-unit material, lives in burger box vs burger wrap. If a box is the answer, see custom printed burger boxes; for pocket formats, see grease-resistant food bags. Rolled döner, dürüm and shawarma wraps have their own grade and sheet-size logic, set out in döner and kebab wrap paper.

Terminology by market

Buyers searching in their own language or market terms will meet different names for the same products:

When a quotation says "parchment" or "Pergament", it is worth asking which material is actually meant: true vegetable parchment, silicone baking paper or greaseproof Pergamentersatz.

Specifying wraps for a chain or multi-site operation

Chains get the most from printed wraps when the specification is standardised across sites: one or two grammages, a short list of sheet sizes and a single print design system. Fewer SKUs mean longer runs per item and simpler reordering.

Practical points that come up repeatedly in multi-site rollouts:

• Map each menu item to one wrap size and fold, rather than letting each site choose
• Use colour or pattern variants on the same base paper to distinguish products (for example vegetarian or spicy) instead of different materials
• Keep storage in mind: thin paper takes on moisture and curls if stored in humid kitchens, so cartons should be kept closed and off the floor
• Agree how print colour will be judged on a translucent sheet, ideally against an approved production sample
• Plan replenishment around forecast usage, as wraps are high-volume, low-value items where stock-outs push sites to buy unbranded paper locally

For standardising packaging across franchise locations more broadly, see packaging for restaurant chains and franchises. Napkins are often specified alongside wraps as part of the same branded set; see custom printed napkins.

Ordering printed wraps from Türkiye

Printed greaseproof paper ships compactly, because flat sheets and rolls pack densely, so freight per unit is usually low compared with bulky boxes. Paper packaging moving from Türkiye into the EU travels under the EU-Türkiye Customs Union with an A.TR movement certificate; import VAT still applies in the destination country.

UK and US imports follow different rules: the UK-Türkiye FTA requires proof of preferential origin, and US duty rates on Turkish goods have changed frequently and must be checked at the time of order. Details are in sourcing packaging from Türkiye. Minimum quantities for printed wraps depend on the material, format, number of colours and run configuration; see what determines MOQ, cost drivers and lead times rather than relying on a headline figure.

What to send for a quotation

A complete brief lets a converter quote the right material first time and avoids re-quoting after samples. Send the following, and use the packaging RFQ guide for the general structure:

• Products to be wrapped or lined, with temperature, grease and moisture level (for example "double smash burger with sauce, 10-15 minutes in delivery")
• Preferred material type, or the performance you need if you are open to suggestions
• Grammage, or the current paper you are replacing (a sample helps)
• Grease resistance target (KIT) and any Cobb requirement
• PFAS-free requirement and the markets where the wraps will be used
• Format: cut sheets, interfolded, counter rolls or machine reels; sizes, core and reel diameters where relevant
• Artwork: number of colours, Pantone references, coverage, food-contact face
• Annual usage and expected order frequency per SKU
• Required documents: Declaration of Compliance, BfR XXXVI, FDA statements, fluorine test data
• Delivery country and preferred Incoterm

Request a quotation with these details, and 9 Packaging will review the specification and confirm the material, format and print approach for your wraps.

Packaging sets by industry

• Packaging for Burger Restaurants: the full burger restaurant packaging set and how this product fits into it
• Packaging for Pizzerias and Pizza Delivery: the full pizzeria packaging set and how this product fits into it
• Packaging for Bakeries and Bakery Chains: the full bakery packaging set and how this product fits into it

Related reading

• Packaging glossary: paper, board, print and compliance terms
• How Greaseproof Wraps and Printed Napkins Are Made

Browse the full food wrap and papers category for wraps and tray liners.