Suzano has officially inaugurated the expanded Eucafluff production line at its Limeira mill in the state of São Paulo, six months after the new operation started up.
The R$490 million project has boosted the company’s annual fluff pulp capacity from around 100,000 tonnes to 440,000 tonnes. More than 300 professionals were involved in delivering the expansion.
Rather than adding a new conventional market pulp line, Suzano chose to convert an existing bleached hardwood kraft unit into a flexible production asset. The facility can now produce either Eucafluff or standard market pulp, giving the mill the ability to adjust its output in line with market conditions.
This flexibility also helps reduce the risks associated with concentrating too heavily on a single specialty grade.
Guilherme Melhado Miranda
Global Director of Fluff and Fiber Solutions | Suzano
Positioning in hygiene markets
With the expanded capacity, Suzano is strengthening its presence among manufacturers of absorbent products, including baby diapers, feminine hygiene products, adult incontinence products, pet pads, as well as selected nonwoven and medical materials.
Eucafluff differs from traditional softwood-based fluff pulp through its use of eucalyptus fibres, which are shorter and thinner. These characteristics promote liquid distribution, softness and retention within absorbent structures. The product is also marketed as a way to design thinner absorbent articles and to enhance the performance of superabsorbent polymers.
Its adaptation at industrial scale, however, requires certain technical adjustments by converters. The introduction of eucalyptus fibres may call for changes to hammermills, breaking bars and fibre preparation systems, especially in formulations that combine hardwood and softwood fibres.
In this context, application support and customer qualification remain key levers for placing the additional volume.
Strategic move up the value chain
Launched commercially in 2015 after more than a decade of R&D, Eucafluff is entering a new phase with this project. The capacity increase effectively transforms what was a niche product into a large-scale industrial platform.
At 440,000 tonnes per year, Suzano is now in a stronger position to compete with traditional softwood fluff pulp producers, particularly in North America and Northern Europe.
The project also reflects a broader trend in the pulp sector, where producers are looking to move beyond commoditized market pulp by developing higher value-added grades. These segments offer greater differentiation and closer customer integration, but they also demand more intensive technical support and stricter qualification processes.
In the near term, Suzano’s priorities will be to stabilize production at the higher capacity, ensure consistent fibreization properties and secure sufficient market uptake for the additional volumes.
While the inauguration ceremony held on June 26 marks the industrial completion of the project, its commercial success will depend on how quickly hygiene and nonwoven producers absorb the newly available capacity.
Suzano’s Eucafluff operation in Limeira produces eucalyptus-based fluff pulp engineered for absorbent hygiene applications, including diapers, feminine care and adult incontinence products.
