At 2025’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, NBCo presented its ‘disappearing’ fibre-based bottle, intended to be up to 99% recyclable and biodegradable in the natural environment, as a replacement for conventional plastic bottles.
Apparently, the bottle is made from ‘rapidly renewable’ plant materials such as bamboo, agricultural waste like bagasse, and local, indigenous fibre mixes, coated in natural polymers. Making use of a global network of manufacturing partners, the decentralized manufacturing approach is hoped to establish circularity while keeping supply chains short – cutting down on delivery times, reducing emissions, and creating jobs within communities.
Each bottle is said to be 90-99% recyclable in existing paper streams, thus conserving resources and minimizing strain on waste systems. The solution is also set to keep waste out of landfills and oceans but, since the bottle is ‘designed to disappear’, the results of biodegradability testing in soil and seawater are expected in early 2025.
The natural strength of plant fibres is combined with precision engineering in NBCo’s proprietary moulding process; the shape, size, and colour of a bottle can be customized to fit the customer’s branding, as can the thickness and density of the bottle’s walls to suit the product it will contain.
Computer-aided engineering, cellulose technology partnerships, and bio-additive enhancements are all utilized in a bid to optimize the bottles’ structural properties. As well as being engineered to withstand topload pressures and filling stresses, they reportedly undergo simulated mechanical stress analysis, alongside drop and compression testing, to ensure they perform appropriately.
NBCo also provides custom formulations and bio-additives to achieve the desired moisture and oxygen barriers while avoiding plastic coatings. Its bottles are tested for Oxygen Transmission Rate (OTR), Water Vapour Transmission Rate (WVTR), alcohol resistance, leakage, and shelf life.
Customers can choose between different closure options to fit their individual needs. The company says it is also working on fibre-based and compostable, biobased cap options.
Additionally, the bottle can be personalized with pad printing, silkscreen, transfer printing, and embossing and debossing, among other techniques; soy-based inks can be used upon request.
NBCo plans to convert ‘billions of plastic units’ into a fibre-based alternative and cites an example in which it diverted 240,000 tonnes (96%) of a customer’s 250,000-tonne plastic packaging output over seven years.
“Every year we produce over 600 billion plastic bottles, designed to be used briefly to then exist for centuries,” the company stated in a press release. “The launch of the NBCo fibre bottle, held during the World Economic Forum, symbolized NBCo’s scale of ambition and intent to help solve one of our biggest global challenges.”
“Our mission is to empower global brands to rapidly transition away from plastic and transform their supply chains,” said founder and CEO Alvin Lim. “Through collaboration and innovation, we’re creating scalable, viable solutions that address the environmental crisis posed by traditional packaging.”
Also at Davos, NBCo announced its Fast Forward 50 initiative, in which the first 50 brands will be able to test 50 of NBCo’s bottles for free. By allowing companies to trial the solution in real-world applications, NBCo hopes to reduce barriers to entry, speed up adoption, and prove that its bottle is viable at scale.
Several other fibre-based bottle solutions have come to light in recent months. Paboco and Blue Ocean Closures came together to release what is claimed to be the ‘industry’s first’ market-ready paper bottle and fibre-based cap combination; its HDPE barrier is said to weigh less than 2 grams, with Paboco planning to introduce paper bottles at scale by the end of 2025.
Diageo and PA Consulting also embraced paper in the alcoholic drinks sector, from a paper-based bottle for Baileys’ Original Irish Cream Liqueur, designed to be recycled in standard paper streams; to a 90% paper-based bottle for Johnnie Walker Black Label scotch whisky poured behind the bar, which is thought to emit 47% less carbon than traditional glass bottles.
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