WASHINGTON, DC - The International Paint and Printing Ink Council (IPPIC), which provides a forum for exchange and cooperation on international issues and priorities facing the paint and printing inks industry, will celebrate its 20^th anniversary in 2012. Since its inception in 1992, IPPIC has developed into a leading representative of the global paints and printing inks industry. Through the years, the council has matured and flourished, adding members of paint and printing ink associations representing Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the EU, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the UK and the United States. In that time, IPPIC has helped coordinate the development of industry policy on international issues by sharing information germane to industry and analyzing the global implications. 

Common concerns and matters facing the paint and printing ink industries on a global level have increased significantly. While it is always a constant challenge for each individual country to manage the myriad of domestic regulations, it has become increasingly difficult to interpret the potential impact of foreign issues. IPPIC was conceived and instituted in an attempt to improve communication and to coordinate industry policy on matters of international concern. IPPIC does not set policy. Rather, it acts as a focal point for monitoring and communicating specified international issues, develops recommendations and analyses on selected issues of common interest to the participating organizations, and attempts to derive a common position in conjunction with the governing bodies of the respective participants. 

In 2005, IPPIC was granted NGO status from the United Nations Economic and Social Council, which empowers IPPIC to highlight international industry issues before the UN and its affiliated organizations. Its global advocacy efforts follow and participate in the International Maritime Organization, UN Subcommittee on the Transport of Dangerous Goods, UN Subcommittee on Globally Harmonized System for Labeling, World Health Organization and the UN Environment Program.