Dubbed Alpha Bio, the €130 million (US$140 million) will begin converting up to 44,000 MT of plant sugars to bioproducts in late 2027. Targeted products include high-performance biopolymers for use in various applications, such as home and personal care and industrial solutions.
Alpha Bio’s production will use IFF’s Designed Enzymatic Biomaterial™ platform technology, integrated at the IFF biorefinery in Kotka, Finland.
“Our partnership with Kemira has reached a significant milestone, enabling us to scale the production of groundbreaking biobased materials to meet the large and growing demand for high-performing and sustainable alternatives to fossil-derived polymers,” said Erik Fyrwald, IFF CEO. “IFF’s DEB technology not only guarantees superior purity and consistency compared to traditional biopolymers but also enhances performance across various applications.”
IFF’s DEB platform leverages biotechnology by using plant-based sugars and enzymes under mild process conditions to create biobased materials, which can be tailored for specific product applications. This allows manufacturers to replace traditional fossil-based synthetic polymers with more sustainable alternatives.
Operating as an independent entity in Kotka, Finland, the joint venture will manufacture a specific line of products enabled by DEB technology for exclusive use by IFF and Kemira. The creation of Alpha Bio is expected to generate approximately 30 direct new jobs in the Kotka area with additional job creation during the project’s construction phase.