EFI Group plans to launch the second phase of its Pulp Master plant-based pulp packaging project in the first quarter of 2028, doubling annual production capacity to 100 million units, according to the company's founder, Ihor Liski.
“The first phase of the project has already been launched with an annual production capacity of 50 million units. Following the completion of the second phase, scheduled for the first quarter of 2028, we plan to increase packaging output to 100 million units per year,” Liski said in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
According to him, the project is being financed through a combination of the founders’ own investments and a credit facility.
“This model allows us to implement the project in stages, ensuring stable development and controlled scaling,” Liski explained.
Liski noted that Pulp Master was designed from the outset as an export-oriented business, with more than 90% of its products intended for international markets.
“Based on a comprehensive market assessment, the company estimates that even under a scenario of rapid growth in domestic demand, the Ukrainian market for this type of packaging would amount to around 10 million units annually. That is why Pulp Master has been export-focused from the very beginning,” he said.
Currently, raw materials for production are sourced from Europe and Asia.
“For disposable tableware, we primarily use sugarcane fiber of Asian origin, which best meets the requirements for this product category. The raw material mix will gradually be optimized and adjusted as the project develops,” Liski said.
He added that the long-term goal is to establish a Ukrainian pulp production system based on agricultural by-products and fruit-growing residues.
As previously reported, the first phase of the €5 million Pulp Master project recently began operations in Zhytomyr. It is the fourth environmentally friendly packaging project developed by EFI Group, although the company's previous three facilities use recycled paper as their primary raw material.
Founded in 2007, EFI Group develops and manages business projects in Ukraine. Its investment portfolio includes healthcare and medtech, the paper, food processing, and woodworking industries, as well as agricultural supply chains.
The group's businesses include animal fat and feed additive producer Feednova, honey producer Beehive, the Medical Star healthcare network, Zhytomyr Cardboard Mill, Sem Ecopack, timber processor Forest Technology, agricultural supplier EFI Agro, and the medical online platform Doc.ua, among others.
