Colombier has secured financial backing from Taaleri to scale operations

FINLAND – Finnish paper and forest product manufacturer, Colombier has received financial backing from Taaleri Bioindustry I Fund to expand operations.

Colombier Finland will use the proceeds from the investment to expand its ecological packaging plant in Pyhtää, which produces innovative packaging materials.

A subsidiary of the Colombier Group, Colombier Finland offers sustainable alternatives to plastic packaging.

The company offers its customers alternatives to plastic packaging. In addition to Finland, the group has subsidiaries in the Netherlands, Great Britain and Spain.

Colombier Group CEO Juha Viitala said: “Our innovative Ecological Packaging division has generated a large degree of interest from capital markets.

“We found a great partner in Taaleri to realize the tremendous growth potential of our award-winning Colombier EcoBarrier products.

“We were particularly impressed by Taaleri’s in-house expertise in manufacturing and green tech.

“Our partnership will help bring more of our environmentally sound and sustainable products to global food and packaging users.”

The investment is the first for the Taaleri Bioindustry I Fund and comes after the fund raised more than €100m (US$103 million) in its second funding round in September this year.

The fund invests in industrial-scale production facilities and companies that work to increase bioindustry production.

Its operations comply with Article Nine of the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation.

Taaleri Bioindustry director Tero Saarno said: “We are very happy to start working with Colombier.

“The market for sustainable packaging is growing rapidly, as plastic-based packaging is increasingly being replaced by paper and cardboard-based products. Colombier has excellent products for this market and an expanding selection.”

With a focus on renewable energy and other alternative investments, Taaleri funds ‘economically profitable’ projects that can make a ‘lasting positive impact on the environment and society.’

The company has been a signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) since 2010 and joined the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative last year.

Meanwhile in March this year, Taaleri invested €1 million (US$1.03m) in Nordtreat, a Finnish company producing environmentally friendly and non-toxic fire retardants.

The investment opened up investment opportunities for the Taaleri Bioindustry I fund, which was in the fundraising phase.

The fund was launched last December and was one of Finland’s first private equity funds to be classified as dark green, (funds under Article 9 of the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation).

The fund only makes sustainable investments in projects that, for example, contribute substantially to climate change mitigation.

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