Label Quality
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Kelly Fitzgerald
Update on Label Longevity and Product Enhancement
Following customer feedback regarding the longevity of our peelable labels, we’re pleased to announce an upgrade to both our permanent and peelable labels — they will now feature a top-coated finish.
This enhancement is designed to improve the durability and longevity of all printed labels. While our manufacturer cannot guarantee a specific lifespan, this upgrade should help protect the print quality for longer.
Please note that the longevity of printed labels can still be affected by several environmental and usage factors, including:
Environmental Exposure – Sunlight (UV rays), heat, and humidity can all impact stability and cause fading over time.
Chemicals & Cleaning Agents – Exposure to cleaning products, solvents, oils, or chemicals can damage label surface.
Surface & Application Conditions – The surface the label is applied to, and the conditions during application (cleanliness, temperature, texture), play a key role in adhesion and print longevity.
Handling & Friction – Frequent contact, rubbing, or stacking can wear away print over time, especially in high-contact environments.
We value your input and would love to hear your feedback in the future should you notice any differences in performance or longevity. Your observations help us continue improving the quality of our products.
Thank you for your continued support.
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Emily Russell
Kelly Fitzgerald Thanks for that. Are the labels on your consumables site at the moment these new ones? They are Code:HW-ZEBLAB
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Kelly Fitzgerald
Emily Russell Not yet Emily — we’re currently waiting on the manufacturer to complete production and dispatch the updated labels. We expect to begin selling the new version in around two weeks' time.
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Kelly Fitzgerald
Thank you all for your feedback regarding peelable labels. Citrus-Lime is currently reviewing the issue and assessing alternative solutions. We will provide an update as soon as more information becomes available.
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Emily Russell
Kelly Fitzgerald thank you.
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Emily Russell
Has there been any progression on this since the summer? Any further thoughts on label quality from Citrus Lime Neil McQuillan - CEO Citrus-Lime? We are fielding the regular "labels are fading so fast, we can't scan this product" feedback again from staff.
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PM
Yes , we have had a batch that fade to nothing in less than a year and we have had ones from before citrus lime that show no signs of fading after 5 years
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Gina Ortiz
I would love to be able to use the Avery labels that go in our regular printer instead of these weird labels that have to go in the special label printer. We always used the Avery ones before, and they are available to us locally at any office supply store rather than having to order from very far away.
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Scott
Peelable labels just are not good. We want to use them but the fading is crazy and they fall off products like confetti after a couple of months so we gave up with them :(
Neil McQuillan - CEO Citrus-Lime
I believe all thermal printing fades over time, from memory pealable labels are worse than the none pealable ones. What kind of time frame are you looking at before they become unusable?
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Michael Porraro
Neil McQuillan - CEO Citrus-Lime they need to last more than a year for sure. I have labels that were printed on DYMO machine that are going fine for years. As long as they don't get sun baked they hold up fine. These Labels just fade away. Next time I'll order the permanent labels. Maybe those will last longer. It could also be an issue with the label vendor.
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Stefan Moody
Michael Porraro Hi Michael. If you need your labels to last longer before they fade you'll need to change to Thermal Transfer printers with the ink ribbon and label setup. Direct Thermal never lasts long. The permanent labels will only last longer if the label itself has a different coating to the peelable ones... nothing to do with the adhesive.
Neil, can you check to see if Citrus Lime can offer labels with a better, longer-lasting option from your label supplier?
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Michael Porraro
Stefan Moody Another issue for Citrus to Solve....
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Tom C
Neil McQuillan - CEO Citrus-Lime Yes, we had thermal labels that lasted far longer than the citrus lime supplied ones - is it possible for you to acquire these:
Top coated direct thermal labels:
You can upgrade to top coated direct thermal labels which have an extra of coating to protect against sunlight and marking.
Top coated direct thermal labels work more effectively than standard direct thermal labels to prevent print fading and label material marking when scuffed. The main advantage of switching to this material is that if you have a direct thermal only printer (where you don't use a ribbon) you do not need to purchase a new printer.
Toby K Selph Arnett
Stefan Moody. We need to be able to use avery labels and our regular printers.
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Pete Baars
Tom C I have some old labels on some Antique Stock on our sale rail that predate our switch. These are still legible and scan we switched over back in October 2019 when our only worry was Brexit. They still scan!