Avantium Partners with Gepack and Frubaça on PEF 'releaf®' Bottles for Functional Beverage Shots
Amsterdam, June 29, 2026 — Avantium N.V., a leader in renewable and circular polymer materials, has announced a value-chain collaboration with Portuguese bottle manufacturer Gepack and juice producer Frubaça to explore the use of Avantium’s PEF (polyethylene furanoate), marketed as releaf®, in small-format bottles for functional beverage shots.
The project brings together partners across the full value chain — from polymer production to bottle manufacturing and filling — to demonstrate the application of PEF in one of the beverage industry’s fastest-growing segments: functional beverage shots.
The Challenge: High-Performance Packaging for Sensitive Formulations
Functional beverage shots — concentrated drinks delivering vitamins, adaptogens, caffeine, or other bioactive ingredients — represent a rapidly expanding category. These products demand packaging with exceptional barrier properties to protect sensitive formulations from oxygen ingress and flavor degradation, while consumers and brands increasingly seek alternatives to fossil-based plastics.
Conventional PET bottles, while recyclable, have limitations in barrier performance for oxygen-sensitive products. Multi-layer structures or coatings can improve barrier but often compromise recyclability.
The Solution: PEF (Polyethylene Furanoate) — A 100% Plant-Based, Recyclable Alternative
Avantium’s PEF, branded as releaf®, is a high-performance polyester made from plant-based sugars via the company’s proprietary YXY® Technology. The key building block, FDCA (furandicarboxylic acid), is catalytically converted from fructose, creating a polymer that is 100% bio-based (derived from renewable plant sugars), fully recyclable (compatible with existing PET recycling streams), offers superior barrier performance (10× better oxygen barrier and 2× better CO₂ barrier than PET), and boasts enhanced mechanical strength allowing for lightweighting.
These properties make PEF particularly suited for functional beverage shots, where product integrity and shelf life are paramount.
Value-Chain Collaboration: From Polymer to Filled Bottle
This collaboration spans the complete production chain, involving Avantium as the PEF (releaf®) polymer supplier from Amsterdam, Netherlands, Gepack handling bottle manufacturing (injection stretch blow molding) in Portugal, and Frubaça managing beverage filling and formulation, also in Portugal.
Gepack produces the small-format PEF bottles using standard injection stretch blow molding equipment, demonstrating PEF’s processability on existing PET production lines. Frubaça then fills the bottles with functional beverage formulations, validating performance under real-world filling and storage conditions.
Executive Perspectives
Lígia Passos, Head of R&D at Gepack: "This project demonstrates how new materials can be integrated into existing bottle production processes. Working with Avantium and partners enables us to evaluate PEF in a real application and across the value chain."
Bineke Posthumus, Commercial Director at Avantium: "Collaborating across the value chain is essential to assess how new materials perform in real applications. This project allows us to evaluate PEF across the full process, in a compact and distinctive shot format — a category that combines strong consumer appeal with a real need for high-performance, more sustainable packaging."
Technical Advantages for Functional Beverages
The functional beverage shot format presents unique challenges that PEF effectively addresses. Its superior oxygen barrier protects volatile actives and prevents oxidation of sensitive ingredients, contributing to flavor and nutrient protection and shelf-life extension without relying on excessive preservatives. The material’s higher mechanical strength also enables material reduction through thinner walls, while its circular compatibility allows PEF bottles to be recycled in existing PET streams (validated by RecyClass). Furthermore, its bio-based feedstock contributes to a lower carbon footprint by reducing lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.
Market Context
The global functional beverage market is projected to reach $250+ billion by 2028, with the "shot" format growing at double-digit rates. Brands are under pressure from the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD) and Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) to increase recycled content and improve recyclability—while consumers demand cleaner labels and sustainable packaging.
PEF’s unique positioning—bio-based, recyclable, and higher-performing than PET—addresses all three drivers simultaneously.
Avantium’s Commercial Trajectory
Avantium has successfully demonstrated its YXY® Technology at pilot scale in Geleen, Netherlands, and is advancing toward the world’s first commercial FDCA plant in Delfzijl, Netherlands. The company’s shares are listed on Euronext Amsterdam and Brussels (symbol: AVTX), and it is a component of the AScX index.
Recent milestones include the June 2026 RecyClass validation of PET/PEF bottles as fully recyclable in the PET stream, a June 2026 partnership with Amcor Rigid Packaging on plant-based PEF packaging, and an ongoing Hoogesteger capacity reservation agreement for releaf® supply.
Resources
About the Companies
Avantium is a pioneering commercial-stage company focused on renewable and circular polymer materials. The company develops and commercializes innovative technologies for producing materials based on sustainable carbon feedstocks—carbon from biomass or CO₂. Its flagship YXY® Technology converts plant-based sugars into FDCA, the building block for PEF (polyethylene furanoate), marketed as releaf®.
Gepack is a Portugal-based manufacturer of PET bottles, specializing in injection stretch blow molding for the beverage, food, and personal care industries. The company is actively exploring sustainable material alternatives for its brand owner-brand owners.
Frubaça is a Portuguese producer of fresh juices and functional beverages, focused on natural, clean-label formulations. The company collaborates with packaging innovators to reduce environmental impact while maintaining product quality.
Source: Avantium press release, June 29, 2026