FAQ'S

Frequently asked questions

What are your delivery terms?

  • UK– Go-Pak UK deliver nationwide on orders over one pallet (DAP). Orders less than one pallet will come from an approved distributor (trading terms apply).
  • Europe – Go-Pak provides delivery services to most European countries. Since March 2023, we have enhanced our distribution network offering a chance for our EU customers to be served from our EU Distribution Centre in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. Additionally, we offer EXW services, allowing EU countries to collect goods from our Dublin distribution centre (EU-EU sale) or from our UK distribution centre in Sharpness, England for non-EU countries.
  • Rest Of The World– Go-Pak do not operate a transport infrastructure outside of Europe but you can still order and collect from our factory. Please talk to us about direct containers worldwide from our factories in Vietnam on +44 (0) 1454 285400.

What is your standard UK lead time?

  • Day one for day four for our UK customers.
  • Manufacturing lead time is between six and eight weeks plus travel time.

What stock products do you hold?

  • Go-Pak hold an extensive range of standard stock products at our 15,000 pallet UK warehouse. For more information please contact our specialist team on +44 (0) 1454 285400.
  • Go-Pak UK do not stock a standard cold cup but we can produce cold cups, subject to an MOQ of 100,000pcs.

What markets do Go-Pak focus on?

Our main core markets are:

  • Foodservice
  • Cash and carry
  • Retail

What countries do you sell your products in?

  • Our partners and customers are international and we currently trade in Europe, USA, Canada and Australia.
  • Go-Pak are continuously looking to build strategic global partnerships and grow our customer base. To find out more please visit https://www.go-pakuk.com/international-trade

What certifications do you have?

  • ISO 9001:2015 standard
  • ISO 14001:2015
  • BRC Grade A S&D.
  • Members of the FPA
  • Members of the AVA (Automatic Vending Association)
  • Sedex Members

For all of our latest certification please visit here.

How can I become a distributor?

  • Please contact our Sales team at sales@go-pakuk.com or on +44 (0) 1454 285400.

What are your minimum order quantities (MOQ) for printed products? Why do you not do short runs?

  • Go-Pak are a specialist high-volume manufacturer who use a large flexo printer and support six Pantone colours (PMS). These printers are very efficient and cost effective for large print runs over 50,000 pieces. Small prints runs are often a lot more expensive as they use a different type of print process.

How do I submit artwork for custom printed paper cups?

  • Artwork is best submitted as editable vector art and saved using the AI, PDF, EPS or SVG file formats.
  • If a Pantone (PMS) colour is not provided, our design team will match as closely as possible against provided artwork.
  • A colour visual is then produced, once the artwork has been reworked onto the cup or product template, and forwarded to you in PDF form for approval.
  • Origination charges do apply to new print jobs. For more information please contact our specialist team on +44 (0) 1454 285400

Can I design my own custom print artwork?

  • Yes! If you would like to design your own custom printed products, then please get in touch so that we can supply you with the correct templates and guidelines.

What is a Pantone colour (PMS)?

  • The Pantone Matching System (PMS) is the colour system we use and a reproduction standard in which colours across the spectrum are each identified by a unique, independent number. The use of PMS allows us to maintain colour consistency throughout the printing process and colour accuracy for different print runs.
  • Go-Pak offer up to six different Pantone colours as either a coated gloss ‘C’ or an uncoated matt ‘U’ for artwork and printing.
  • Please note that metallic Pantone inks are not used on our compostable products as they contain light metals that will not breakdown with the rest of the product.

What is the difference between ‘coated’ gloss ‘C’ and ‘uncoated’ matt ‘U’ Pantone colours?

  • The PANTONE PLUS SERIES comes in two forms which affect the colours visual appearance, A: ‘coated’ (gloss ‘C’) and B: ‘uncoated’ (matt ‘U’).
  • These terms refer to the paper on which the colours are printed. Coated paper has a shiny gloss coating, where and the ink sits atop the coating, allowing for minimal ink absorption, and making a Pantone colour appear brighter through greater light reflection. Whereas the same Pantone colour on uncoated paper has no surface coating, permitting maximum ink absorption into the paper, which gives the ink more subtle and lighter look.
  • Although there is a variance in ink film thickness, most of the difference is attributed directly to the reaction of the ink to the paper. The best representation of how the difference looks, can be seen when you compare the same colour in both the coated’ gloss ‘C’ and uncoated matt ‘U’ PANTONE PLUS SERIES books.

How do I make sure the colours are correct?

  • If you have selected a Pantone colour(s), then they have a standardised colour reproduction system. By standardising the colours, different manufacturers in different locations can all refer to the Pantone system to make sure colours match.
  • The Pantone colour system within the book is based around printing onto a pure white substrate, so different coloured substrates can affect a colour’s appearance once printed.
  • If we have matched a Pantone colour against something from a different colour system – CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) or RGB (red, green, blue), then there will likely be some variance, so we always advise that you cross reference any matched colours against a Pantone colour book for accuracy whenever possible.
  • Please note that the colour on the PDF is based on a CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) colour model and your monitor or screen use a RGB (red, green, blue) colour model which will likely affect how the Pantone colours appear, so we always advise that you cross reference against a Pantone colour book for accuracy whenever possible.

What materials do you use to make your cups?

  • Go-Pak cups are manufactured from Virgin SBS (Solid Bleached Sulphate) paper cup board with a PE (Polyethylene) lining or a PLA (Polylactic Acid) lining if they are compostable. The paper board comes from trees grown in sustainable forests in Asia. The board weight and thickness varies according to the size of the cup.

Are paper cups recyclable?

  • Yes, out Paper Cups can, and are, being recycled.
  • Paper Cup recycling is common at a number of paper mills in the UK. This is happening in increasing volumes due to action groups such as the Paper Cup Recovery & Recycle Group (www.pcrrg.uk). In fact these mills in the UK could recycle all the paper cups in the UK each year if they had the chance.
  • In order to ensure that the used cups are received by the paper mills in the best condition for recycling, they should be placed in segregated waste streams by the consumer once they are finished with.

What is biodegradable?

  • A biodegradable product is one that is capable of being decomposed through the metabolism of microorganisms. What this essentially means for a biodegradable plastic is that it’s eaten! This process leaves no trace of the product’s original existence – the carbon atoms within the plastic are broken apart as organic molecules are created. These molecules can be processed by, and create, organic living things. This generates a natural and sustainable lifecycle.

What is compostable?

  • Compostable products are a subset of biodegradable products, which means as well as biodegrading, they also meet certain criteria under certain conditions.  Our compostable products fall into two categories – those that are suitable for home composting and those that are commercially compostable.
  • Because of the comparatively smaller volumes of waste involved, the temperature in a garden compost heap is lower and tends to be less constant than in an industrial composting environment.  This means that certified home compostable packaging can simply be placed in your home compost.
  • Commercially compostable products, which will have been rigorously tested in order to meet the conditions as set out in EN-13432 will biodegrade by 90% within six months. At 12 weeks, 90% of the product should pass through 2mm x 2mm mesh. This stage of testing evidences the disintegration of the packaging product. Finally, the toxicity and quality of the finished compost must not be adversely affected by the ‘compostable’ subject to safely ensure the future growth of organic life.
  • In order for our commercially compostable products to fulfill the lifecycle we intend for them – an infrastructure, as illustrated on our Edenware page, is vital. Consumers using compostable packaging must be diligent in using a designated commercial food waste stream, while avoiding the disposal of non-compostable materials that will be rejected as contaminates.

What are Edenware® Cups made from?

  • Our Edenware cups are made using certified, compostable PLA-lined paperboard. This is a plant-based lining and offers a sustainable alternative to conventional PE lined cups. Our use of water and vegetable-based inks allows you to create an environmentally friendly custom design suitable for industrial composting facilities.

Where can I find the size of products or cases?

  • This can be found on our website or by requesting a digital version of our brochure. For more information, please contact our specialist team on +44 (0) 1454 285400.
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