Choc.ly
Edible ink formulation to enable personalised confectionary
Supporting the R&D of edible inks for printing on personalised confectionary
Choc.ly is a business based in the North East of England that has developed a printing technique to print multiple high precision layers of edible ink onto chocolate. The company produces inkjet inks derived from natural pigments that can be printed onto chocolate for personalised confectionary.
Choc.ly partnered with CPI with a primary research focus to develop their ink formulation using natural pigments and to improve the ink’s resistance to bacterial growth. Choc.ly worked with CPI to develop suitable ink formulations and test their colour stability and bacterial growth over time.
This work was carried out as part of CPI’s Project IMPACT (Innovative Materials via Precision Additive Coating Technologies), which was part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

“The state-of-the-art facilities and highly skilled teams we had the opportunity to work with through CPI have provided the technical insight needed to advance our natural edible ink formulations. CPI also helped us to secure key funding for the project, and we’re now much closer to commercialisation.”
Achievements
Inputs
- ERDF funding via Project IMPACT
- Expertise in the formulation of printable inks and additive manufacturing
- State-of-the-art facilities
Outputs
- Formulation of different coloured, natural pigment inks
- Tests conducted on the colour stability and bacterial growth over time of the ink formulations
- Report produced detailing findings and recommendations for further research
Outcomes
- Suitable alternative formulations for colour stable inks with bacterial growth inhibition developed
- Greater understanding of the effects of pH changes in inhibiting bacterial growth in Choc.ly’s inks
- Further research goals identified
- Discussions underway with global confectionary manufacturers to advance commercialisation
