OKI distributor claims aftermarket to be problematic, lacks structure and support to be truly environmental. 
Martin Venter of Printacom Technologies has claimed remanufactured and compatible cartridges are a “problematic” fringe industry and have a tenuous claim on an environmental ideology and lead to “environmental consequences”.
“Yet another case for choosing genuine consumables over cheap remanufactured or fake alternatives is emerging. That’s because printer ink and toner cartridges from original equipment manufacturers are assembled in facilities that are optimised for low emissions, enter a supply chain which is designed for sustainability, and ultimately, at end of life, are recycled in an appropriate manner.”
Venter cites “one of the more prominent issues” is the export of used toner to third-world countries, including China, where workers are exposed to dangerous fumes and conditions and “cartridges themselves are seldom re-used. Instead, they are swept of residual toner and then burned in unregulated facilities”.
OKI describes the aftermarket as a “something of a fringe industry”, with “little structure or sustainable routes to market” and Venter commenting, “when something goes wrong, there is no support and no recourse. It is very much a case of ‘caveat emptor’, buyer beware”.
Although Venter concedes that OEM consumables are more costly, he stipulates that the pricing is not unreasonable, with “the toner and ink are complex, intricate and very difficult to produce, when manufactured to appropriate standards.
“If remanufactured or counterfeit products are used, we have no way of predicting the outcome of usage; since toner is such an integral component of the final printed image […] and it won’t deliver the same number of pages as an OEM part will”.
*Correction* Mr Ventner is not an employee of OKI, as was erroneously reported by our source, and the article has been corrected to reflect his position as a distributor *Correction*