Pulpex has opened its first commercial fibre-bottle manufacturing facility in Glasgow, Scotland, with an initial production capacity of up to 40 million bottles per year .

The facility marks the company’s transition from pilot-scale production to commercial manufacturing. According to Pulpex, more than 90% of the site’s initially available capacity for the current year has already been committed.

The bottles are made using sustainably sourced wood pulp and are designed to work with existing filling infrastructure and be recycled through household paper and cardboard collection systems.

Launch customers include Purely Scottish Natural Mineral Water and cleaning products brand smol, which is introducing fibre-based bottles for its liquid laundry products.

Glasgow will also serve as a reference plant for Pulpex’s international licensing strategy. The company aims to expand production through manufacturing partners using established packaging facilities and regional supply chains.

Perlen Industrieholding has secured manufacturing exclusivity in Switzerland, Austria, Italy and southern Germany. Separately, Alternicq has obtained exclusive rights to develop the market in India and the Gulf Cooperation Council region.

Pulpex aims to use the Glasgow facility as the starting point for a global manufacturing network, with a long-term target of one billion units annually. The project received investment from the UK’s National Wealth Fund and the Scottish National Investment Bank.