PLYMOUTH – NatureWorks has held a cornerstone laying ceremony to celebrate construction of its new Ingeo manufacturing complex in Thailand.

The event commemorated the progress made to date on the new fully integrated biopolymer facility and featured a ceremonial groundbreaking that mirrored the ceremony held in Blair, Nebraska, USA in 2000, when NatureWorks began construction of the world’s first commercial scale PLA manufacturing facility.

The new plant, located on the Nakhon Sawan Biocomplex (NBC) in Nakhon Sawan Province, is designed to be fully integrated and will produce the full portfolio of Ingeo biopolymer grades, with production sites for lactic acid, lactide and polymer, It will add annual capacity of 75,000 tons

“This ceremony is a meaningful milestone for the entire NatureWorks team,” said president and CEO Rich Altice. “For the last three decades, we have not only been building a company and manufacturing facilities, but also a whole new industry and market for low-carbon, renewable biomaterials that are revolutionising the sustainability and safety of packaging and product materials used in our everyday lives.”

The expanded global production of Ingeo biopolymer will support growth in markets including nonwovens and hygiene, as well as 3D printing, compostable coffee capsules, tea bags, flexible packaging, and food serviceware that demand sustainable, low-carbon biomaterials.