They are lightweight, robust, pleasant to the touch and made of renewable raw materials – no wonder that brand manufactures have been very interested in fibre bottles for years. Usually, the raw material is harvested from the wood of fir and deciduous trees, but companies are increasingly researching the use of fibres from other renewable sources, for example waste products from the food industry.

Curran is the Gaelic word for carrot. Curran is also what the founders of Scottish company CelluComp call their natural, biodegradable raw material that is supposed to make fibre packaging lighter and more robust. The chips, only micrometres in size, were initially produced from carrots; today the material is produced by extracting nano-cellulose fibres from root vegetables, mainly from sugar beet chips, a waste product in the sugar industry.

Robust material with minimum porosity

Recently, the Scots teamed up with RyPax, a manufacturer of moulded fibre packaging located in Asia, and together they developed a bottle that is completely made of fibres. The crucial step was the development of a novel cellulose fibre, which is a mix of Curran, bamboo and bagasse. The result is a very robust material with minimum porosity. Bottles shaped from it can be given a thin, impermeable coating on the inside, which is also made from natural raw materials and is biodegradable. A plastic inside coating is thereby made redundant.

“The integration of the proven technology, of the materials and of RyPax and CelluComp’s experience in production, have made it possible to produce the industry’s first bottle made entirely of fibre on a large scale.”

Christian Kemp-Griffin, CEO von CelluComp

The fibre material is harvested from waste products from the sugar industry.
Image: Unsplash/Lucas van Oort

RyPax and CelluComp have been working for more than three years on a commercial bottle format made entirely of fibre, and have recently received validation by the Danish Technological Institute (DTI), which was an important partner in creating robust proofs of concept.

“We are happy to announce that such a solution is now available. The RyPax/CelluComp bottle has passed all the comprehensive tests necessary for us to grant our approval, which now enables companies to adapt this technology for the global market.”

Alexander Bardenstein, Business Development Manager of the Danish Technological Institute (DTI)

Currently, the packaging solution is intended for water and powdered goods, however, the partnership is supposed to expand production to industrial applications in the beverage, cosmetic, health, medical and food sectors. RyPax and CelluComp also want to develop further fibre solutions in cooperation with the DTI, including fibre screw threads, fasteners, even thinner coatings and novel types of branding on the bottles.

“Following the successful presentation of our bottle made entirely of fibre this year, we are looking forward to the next strategic phase. Accordingly, we are now looking for employees and potential partners who share our vision and excitement about innovations. Together, we want to bring our fibre bottle to mass production and open up new possibilities for brands to reach their sustainability goals.”

Alvin Lim,, CEO of RyPax