PaperFoam lands €2 million to grow its compostable packaging

Dutch packaging maker PaperFoam has secured €2 million to make more of its plant-based, compostable packaging. The money comes as a loan from Invest International, the Dutch government-backed organisation that finances companies growing beyond the Netherlands.

PaperFoam, based in Barneveld, will use the funding in two ways. Part of it will expand its factory in the Czech Republic. The rest will give its plants in Malaysia and the United States more working capital: the everyday cash a business needs to buy materials, pay staff and keep production running.

What does PaperFoam make?

PaperFoam's recipe is simple. It mixes industrial starch, natural fibres, water and a premix of its own into a thick paste. That paste is injected into custom aluminium moulds and baked at around 204°C. Out comes a light, sturdy tray or insert shaped to fit a product exactly.

These parts replace the plastic and polystyrene inserts that often hold phones, perfume bottles and medical devices inside their boxes. According to the company, its packaging is up to 40% lighter than traditional alternatives while still protecting products well, and it can cut the carbon footprint of packaging by up to 90%.

Made to disappear

Once the box is opened, PaperFoam packaging needs no special treatment. It is certified home compostable by TÜV, so it can break down in a garden compost heap within a few weeks without leaving microplastics behind. It can also go in the paper recycling bin, a claim validated by UL.

Brands can pick any colour, add textures or press their logo into the material. That flexibility has won customers in several industries, including beauty group Puig, Dutch retailer HEMA, which uses PaperFoam for its colourful "Kies & Mix" Easter egg packaging, and medical technology company Medtronic.

Filling a funding gap

Growing a factory-based business is expensive, and banks are often wary of new technologies until they are well proven. Invest International says it is stepping in where regular lenders still hesitate.

Its relationship with PaperFoam goes back to 2020, when it helped finance the company's first move into the Czech Republic. Jeroen Plag, Chief Investment Officer at Invest International, said the company "has traveled a difficult path" from promising technology to a business that can grow internationally. He explained that the new loan supports the next phase of growth at a moment when traditional financiers still see it as too risky. Helping green manufacturers scale up, he added, keeps innovation in the Netherlands and shows that sustainability and competitiveness can go hand in hand.

PaperFoam's CEO, Willem Derkman, said building a real alternative to traditional packaging takes time, investment and partners who are willing to think long term. He credited Invest International's ongoing support for the company's international progress so far, and said the new funding will help it add production capacity and serve new markets and customers efficiently.

Good news for Dutch suppliers too

The expansion also benefits other Dutch firms. New production machinery is coming from Kuyer Metaal in Nijkerk and Shuffle-Mix in Barneveld, so a large share of the technology and value behind the growth stays in Dutch manufacturing.

As more brands look for ways to cut plastic, PaperFoam is betting they will want packaging that ends up in the compost heap rather than a landfill. This loan gives it more room to meet that demand.