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Red Leaf Pulp signs Valmet as exclusive supplier for pulp technology

Red Leaf Pulp has announced that Valmet will help to commercialize the company’s agriculture-based pulping process in North America with the installation of a fibreline and other equipment.

Valmet is an exclusive supplier for the pulping technology at Red Leaf’s initial plant in Regina, Sask., which is expected to start commercial production in 2023.

The mill will have the capacity to produce 600 tonnes per day of market pulp from waste wheat straw collected and aggregated from local producers.

Red Leaf Pulp is developing the first non-wood pulp mill in Canada, producing an unbleached product demanded by the US$350 billion paper and packaging market.

“We are pleased to partner with Valmet in developing this new pathway for ag-feedstock pulp. The technology has been successfully proven through piloting at Valmet’s Fiber Technology Center in Sundsvall, Sweden and will comfortably scale to achieve strong financial returns,” says Martin Pudlas, CEO of Red Leaf Pulp, in a statement.

Red Leaf was established in 2019 by Darby Kreitz, the founder of Allnorth Consultants, a 500-person engineering firm with offices across Canada and in Atlanta, Ga.

Allnorth has experience in the design and commissioning of non-wood pulp mills in the United States and Europe, in addition to 26 years providing engineering services to the conventional wood pulp and paper industry.

“The growth of ag-feedstock pulp processing in North America is an exciting development for the pulp and paper industry, with many positive impacts to sustainable business,” adds Drew Humphries, vice-president, Pulp & Energy – North America for Valmet.

“Red Leaf Pulp is a very innovative company and we are proud to combine our expertise with them towards the success of this effort.”