Why is paint so expensive

I attended a seminar this week on paint. It was much more exciting than watching paint dry but about as technical. They talked about the difference between paint qualities and why you should have one vs the other.

There's "apartment" paint. It's not the highest quality and meant to be renewed every few years but that's about how often you have to paint most apartments so it works. Using high quality paint may not be the best use here because it will be repainted over quickly.

The quality of the paint has to do mostly with the bonding agents and how the pigments become part of the wall. Sometimes you have "rub off" with the cheaper paint and that's because the pigments don't stick. The more expensive paint bonds with the wall more and will last longer, so if you want your paint to last a long time it's worth spending a little more money to get something that will last. Just like anything else, many times having something cost a little more upfront can often save you money in the long run.

Another thing that I learned that fascinated me. There is a big emphasis on VOC free, and LEEDS qualified paint. Translation from design vernacular, ecofriendly.
The VOC free is suppose to have less toxins in it and doesn't smell as bad. The "loophole" that some VOC free paint has is that the original paint is VOC free but the tinting pigment that they use to color the paint often is not. So you can buy VOC free paint and then after you add the color too it, it can be just as high, if not higher than non VOC paint. If you want to really go green and be aware of the toxins in your paint, you should ask if the Tint is VOX free. Benjamin Moore's Natura paint fits this bill. However even with this, you want to make sure they are using the Natura pigments and not the regular pigments.