As you dig into labeling options for your product container, you’ll see one term pop up again and again: BOPP. It stands for biaxially oriented polypropylene and it’s an incredibly popular label material.
There are countless benefits to choosing BOPP for your product label — printability, durability and customizability, just to name a few. Like anything, BOPP has its limitations, but across container types, product categories and label designs, you’ll find BOPP specified as the facestock more times than not.
BOPP is polypropylene film which is stretched in both machine and cross directions during production. And a lot of the differences between BOPP and other films can be traced back to this manufacturing method.
The biaxial orientation of BOPP material aligns the polymer chains, increasing the film’s modulus and tensile strength. Machine-direction oriented (MDO) films, which are stretched in only one direction, are less rigid and more comfortable than BOPP. Un-oriented films offer a bit more conformability for squeezable containers but are less easily printed and dispensed.
The manufacturing method of the film, and the inherent properties of polypropylene films, lend BOPP labels a range of properties like:
Clarity, allowing brands to achieve the “no-label” look.
Water, UV and chemical resistance, making BOPP suitable for even the most acidic products and moist environments.
Excellent printability, especially as BOPP is often equipped with a topcoat which anchors the ink to the surface of the film better.
Rigidity, making BOPP labels easy to die-cut, dispense and apply the label to your container.
Label material selection is about finding a construction that works with your container shape, meets your aesthetic preferences, will perform in your product’s environment (e.g., shower, outdoors, kitchen cupboard, etc.) and fits within your packaging budget.
You’ll start with your label vision — how you want your label to look — and then find those materials that will bring it to life without wrinkling, degrading or popping off your container throughout the entire product lifecycle: Manufacturing, storage, shipping, retail display and customer use.
Material selection conversations never start with, “Do I use BOPP or another material?” BOPP is chosen so often simply because it checks all of the boxes in many situations, is widely available and competitively priced.
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