Choosing between wood, rice and hemp paper

Fibre is the first question and the one that constrains all the others. It sets how the paper burns, how much ash is left, how the smoke tastes in the first few draws, and how readily the sheet accepts print. The three families below cover almost every brief we quote.

How fibre changes burn, taste and ash

Wood pulp is a short, even fibre. It burns at a steady rate and leaves a pale, fine ash that holds together. Rice paper is thinner and denser, burns more slowly, and tastes cleaner because less fibre is being combusted per leaf. Hemp is longer-fibred and more variable: it burns a little hotter, leaves a darker and coarser ash, and carries a faintly earthy character that some buyers treat as the whole point and others as an obstacle.

None of these differences is enormous. Basis weight will move burn rate more than fibre will. What fibre reliably changes is the story the pack can tell.

Wood, rice and hemp: honest trade-offs

Wood pulp is the most available and the cheapest per booklet, and it prints the most predictably. It is the right answer for value ranges and for programmes where colour accuracy matters more than a fibre narrative.

Rice paper is the premium default. It costs more, supply is narrower, and the sheet is fragile at the lowest basis weights, so artwork with fine detail needs a test run before you commit to it.

Hemp carries the strongest marketing narrative and a distinctive texture. Batch-to-batch colour variation is wider, and unbleached hemp in particular needs a physical sample approved against a reference before a bulk order.

Basis weight across the 14–22 gsm range

Basis weight	What you gain	Where it suits
14–16 gsm	Fastest burn, lowest ash, maximum show-through	Connoisseur and ultra-thin lines
17.5–18.5 gsm	Balanced burn, strength and opacity	Most retail programmes
20–22 gsm	Slowest burn, most body, best opacity	Unbleached and natural positioning

At the light end you gain burn quality and lose opacity, stiffness and printing latitude. At the heavy end you gain a substantial feel and a clean, opaque print surface, and you pay for it in burn speed and material cost. No grade is best at everything.

Bleached, unbleached and the natural look

Bleached stock gives a bright white base, so four-colour work holds its intended hue and fine detail stays crisp. Unbleached stock gives the warm, off-white tone that buyers read as natural, but it shifts everything printed on it: a brand colour that looks correct on white will read warmer and slightly duller on unbleached paper.

The practical answer is to proof on the actual stock. We print the colour target on the chosen grade rather than on a white reference sheet, and approve that print before plating.

Gum line and shelf behaviour

We gum with Arabic gum, supplied natural or unbleached to match the paper. The gum line does two jobs: it holds the booklet closed, and it releases cleanly at the fold without lifting fibre. On a warm shelf the gum softens and can migrate; in a cold, dry warehouse it can become brittle and crack along the fold.

Unbleached gum matches an unbleached sheet visually but is slightly more sensitive to humidity. For long shelf life or warm climates, specify a wider gum line and tighter packing, and judge it after accelerated ageing rather than on a freshly made sample.

Opacity and show-through

Opacity is the specification buyers notice last and complain about first. A 14 gsm sheet will let the reverse of the leaf show through when the booklet is open, which is acceptable in some markets and a rejection in others. If your artwork is dark, reverse-printed or heavily inked, step up to 17.5 gsm or above and check a sample carrying your own artwork, not ours.

Choosing for a market and price point

Work backwards from the shelf. Three briefs cover most of what we quote:

• A value line in a high-volume market: wood pulp at 17.5–18.5 gsm, bleached, natural gum, modest ink coverage.
• A premium line: rice paper at 14–16 gsm, a heavier outer carton, and print that rewards fine detail.
• A natural or organic-positioned brand: unbleached hemp or wood at 20–22 gsm, unbleached gum, and artwork designed for a warm base rather than proofed on white.

Availability matters as much as fit. Hemp and rice grades can carry longer mill lead times, so confirm the grade before you commit to a launch date.

Summary recommendation

If you are unsure, start with standard bleached wood pulp at 17.5–18.5 gsm and a natural Arabic gum line. It satisfies the widest range of markets, prints predictably and keeps the cost per booklet low. Move to rice for a premium line, and to unbleached hemp only when the brand story and the artwork can carry the extra cost and the wider colour variation. Whichever direction you take, approve a physical sample before the bulk run.

Next step

Tell us the market, the price point and the fibre you are considering through our contact page, and we will send back two or three grade options with basis weights and a sampling timeline. If you already sell a paper you want matched, send a reference pack and we will match weight, opacity, gum line and burn characteristics before quoting.