Diageo-backed paper bottle-maker toasts £20m funding spherical

A producer of sustainable packaging backed by Diageo, the worldwide spirits large, will this week unveil a brand new spherical of funding to allow the supply of a commercially scalable manufacturing line.

Sky News has learnt that Pulpex, which produced the primary Johnnie Walker whisky bottle made totally from paper-based merchandise in 2021, will announce on Monday that it has secured financing from traders together with CMPC, one of many world’s largest pulp and paper corporations.

City sources stated the Series C fundraising comprised between £20m and £25m of extra funding.

Pulpex, which utilises sustainably sourced wooden pulp, was fashioned in 2020 from a collaboration between Diageo and Pilot Lite, a enterprise administration firm.

They, alongside different sustainability impression traders, additionally contributed to the funding spherical.

The intention of the brand new funding is to facilitate a commercial-scale manufacturing line able to producing as much as 12.5m paper bottles yearly at a facility in Cambridgeshire.

Pulpex additionally has plans to ascertain extra capability in unspecified places globally via offers with licensed manufacturing companions from the center of subsequent yr.

By 2028, it desires to supply 2bn bottles yearly for distinguished shopper items producers.

“The scaling of our Pulpex paper bottle technology marks another inflection point in the step change required to reduce reliance on existing packaging formats, which are used out of necessity rather than suitability, by providing a viable alternative that is available globally and has all of the recycling, sustainability and environmental benefits that fibre packaging naturally brings,” Scott Winston, Pulpex chief govt, stated.

“Our technology will enable and accelerate the availability of sustainable fibre packaging for our major brand customers and their packaging suppliers, in turn enabling them to meet consumer demand for more sustainable packaging and helping them to meet their carbon reduction goals for 2030.”

Lazard, the funding financial institution, suggested Pulpex on the funding spherical.