German deep-tech company Bioweg has announced plans to build Europe’s largest bacterial cellulose production plant. The company has secured total funding of €35 million, with construction scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026. The news was reported on September 17.
The new plant will be built on the site of the existing Pfeifer & Langen sugar factory in Elsdorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, applying a precision fermentation process that produces bacterial cellulose using by-products such as molasses from sugar production as fermentation feedstock. The existing pilot facility in Quakenbrück will be expanded from 100 tonnes per year to more than 200 tonnes per year, serving as a bridge to temporarily supply commercial volumes during 2027-2028.
The new plant is planned to have a production capacity of up to 10,000 tonnes per year, with commercial production targeted for 2028. The total funding secured is €35 million, comprising a Series A extension (€18 million), an equity investment from Rabo Ventures (€2 million), an EU “Produktives.NRW” grant (€10.3 million), and other sources (€2 million). About 60% of this is expected to be allocated to construction at the Elsdorf site.
This investment is interpreted as a response to growing demand for bio-based new materials that can replace plastic packaging and synthetic fibers amid the EU’s tightening microplastics regulations adopted in 2023. The circular-economy approach of utilizing by-products from an existing sugar factory as feedstock is also a notable feature.
Bacterial cellulose is a bio-based new material that can be applied across a range of fields including food packaging, cosmetics, medical materials, and textile substitutes, aligning with a recent trend of increasing investment in specialty chemical and biomaterial startups using precision fermentation technology, particularly in Europe. Building a new bio-plant by repurposing an existing chemical facility site, such as a sugar factory, is a strategy that can reduce infrastructure construction costs and permitting timelines, and other biomaterial companies may adopt similar site-reuse models going forward. However, since the project is still in the early stage of scaling up from pilot scale (100-200 tonnes per year) to commercial scale (10,000 tonnes per year), it will likely take time to verify actual mass-production stability and cost competitiveness. The inclusion of EU subsidy support (Produktives.NRW) shows that European governments are lending policy support to fostering the biomaterials industry.
A primary point to watch is whether the construction start scheduled for Q4 proceeds as planned, and when the expansion of the Quakenbrück pilot facility will be completed. Whether offtake agreements with actual customers, such as packaging, cosmetics, and textile companies, are signed following the start of commercial production in 2028 is also of interest. In addition, it remains to be confirmed whether Bioweg will pursue construction of a second commercial plant through additional funding rounds.