Going green is not easy for musicians and could be a bit frustrating sometimes. I mean, the fact that you’re producing albums is already not green in the strict sense. The chemicals used for the blank discs, the materials used for the CD packaging, the shrink wrap…all of these contribute to the destruction of mother earth, right? So what are we to do? Stop making albums and put all our music on the Internet instead, or stop making music altogether and go back to the caves?

If you care for the environment, the best thing you can do is choose the lesser evil-the one that offers a more environment-friendly option. If you are a musician who is about to produce his or her album, here are some simple ways you can get eco-friendly with CD manufacturing.



Ditch the jewel case

Instead of using CD packaging that is made of plastic, try the ones that are made of cardboard paper or paperfoam. If you want the jewel case because of the sturdy tray, then you can choose digipaks. The panels of Digipaks are made of cardoboard paper and the only part that is made of plastic is the tray where you place the CD. Aside from helping the environment, non-jewel cases tend to attract the eye since it is less common compared to the standard jewel cases.

Use soy ink

Soy-based ink is made from soy and is claimed to be more environment-friendly as opposed to the standard petroleum-based ink. Not too many CD manufacturing companies use this ink because it is slower to dry than many inks and it is also a few dollars more expensive. The good thing about using soy ink is that aside from it being gentle to Mother Nature, it is also available in brighter colors.

Use self-mailer jackets if you’re going to ship plenty of CDs

The Self-Mailer Jacket is specially designed for direct mail and is perfect for mass promotion, product samples, and demos. When mailing your CDs, you do not need to place the Self-Mailer Jacket in an envelope anymore because the case itself serves as the envelope. It also has a blank space where you can write the recipient’s name and address. That’s essentially why it’s green. The self-mailer Jacket weighs only two ounces. This is another advantage since you will pay less with shipping.

Get a good estimate of the number of copies you need duplicated

If it is your first time to produce an album, you have to at least get a rough estimate of the possible number of people who would buy your album. It is unwise to duplicate 5,000 copies when only 20 people attend your gigs. I think 500 is a safe number. It is not too few for CD manufacturing companies to produce and it’s not too many that you’ll end up stacking them in the basement to rot. Anyway, once the CDs are all sold, you can always order another batch. So how is this helpful to the environment? Simple. Less CDs produced equals less CDs stacked in the basement equals less materials wasted.

Go local with CD manufacturing

It is definitely a lot better if you choose a CD manufacturing company in your area than big manufacturing companies that are miles away from you. You can save a lot on gas since you won’t be traveling far just to submit, check, and recheck requirements. And because you live close, you will also save a lot of bus or plane fuel since they won’t be shipping the CDs to you anymore. Additionally, you will be helping your town and your neighbors by supporting local business.

See? It’s not that hard to go green;-)

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