When designing products with a shorter lifespan, such as packaging and graphic products, sustainability and circular economy are particularly important. The use of an alternative fiber source for papermaking, such as collected biomass from invasive alien plant species (IAPS), is a good example of sustainable natural resource management, where IAPS are seen as a potential source of various new products. The aim of the present study was to analyze the printability of paper made from the IAPS Goldenrod. CMYK prints were made using inkjet digital technology, and their print quality was determined. IAPS Goldenrod paper, with its natural brownish color, low gloss, high voluminosity, high surface roughness and porosity, shows inferior print quality compared to recycled office paper. In order to improve the printability of this paper, surface coating using three different wet film depositions was applied. The results indicate that the smallest coat weight used suppresses the color and inferior properties of IAPS Goldenrod paper efficiently, resulting in similar printability for both the analyzed papers. Only a small difference in print quality between coated IAPS Goldenrod and recycled paper was determined, suggesting that low-value, non-demanding graphic products and packaging could be made from the coated IAPS Goldenrod paper.

The use of invasive plant species for papermaking presents both environmental and economic opportunities, particularly for companies seeking to introduce sustainable materials. This study examined whether paper made from cellulose fibres of Japanese knotweed is suitable for printing business elements such as logos in specific red colours. The physical, mechanical, and optical properties of the paper were compared with those of standard office and commercial Xerox paper. Two printing techniques—electrophotography and inkjet printing—were tested, and the colour differences (CIE colour difference, ΔE) between the reference logo and the prints, with and without the International Colour Consortium (ICC) colour profile, were evaluated. The results showed that the low whiteness and high porosity of the knotweed paper negatively affected colour reproduction, especially in inkjet printing, where even manually optimised profiles did not yield satisfactory results (minimum ΔE > 23). Electrophotography performed better but still had limitations. It was concluded that Japanese knotweed paper is not suitable for professional reproduction of demanding colour elements without additional processing, although it has potential for sustainable applications with lower visual requirements.