Primera launches edible ink printer

Primera Technology Inc., manufacturer of specialty color printers, is rolling out Eddie, a new printing model that is a NSF and GMP-certified edible ink printer for printing onto cookies and other food items. 

Eddie makes the process of printing onto cookies, candy, white chocolate, biscuits, macarons, and much more, fast and easy. The machine prints a dozen 3.5-inch (89-mm) cookies or other similar-sized items in two minutes. The included carousel feeder rotates the cookies to the print position, the printer pulls in cookies one at a time, prints and sends them back to the carousel – all automatically and hands-free. 

Printed cookies or other food items will be dry and ready for sale immediately after printing. Printed images are bright, vibrant, smudge-resistant and even color-matched to ICC Color Standards. Primera said Eddie is the world’s first certified edible ink printer. 

Out of the box, Eddie is equipped to print items from 3 to 3.5 inches with a maximum thickness of .75 inches. With the purchase of custom trays, that can be extended to accommodate items from 1.5 inches to 4.5 inches. 

Primera also sells a bulk frosting mix that delivers optimal whiteness and print quality and pre-frosted sugar cookies, but bakers can choose to use their own glazes and frostings.  

Cookies for Eddie typically cost from $0.35 each to $1.50 each, with $0.08 for ink at 50% coverage. By charging $3 - $5 per cookie, profit margins can quickly pay for the machine, which sells for $2,995.