October 29, 2025 16:08

As part of the Cerisea project (Competitive Production of HMF and Derivatives for an Eco-designed and Resilient Industry Toward Sustainable European Autonomy), construction has begun in Roussillon, France, on the first industrial-scale plant in Europe for the production of the bio-based monomer 5-HMF (5-hydroxymethylfurfural).
This molecule has applications in bioplastics, biofuels, resins, and other green chemistry products.

A consortium of 12 partners, led by Michelin — which already uses the monomer in its ResiCare resins — has been established to build the new facility.

Once fully operational, the plant will have a production capacity of 3,000 tonnes per year, making it the largest 5-HMF production site in the world. Operations at the Osiris industrial platform in Péage-de-Roussillon are expected to start in 2026, creating around 30 direct jobs.

The Cerisea project is supported with €20 million in funding from the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU), as part of a total €60 million investment. Alongside the plant’s construction, the project will also focus on the development of new applications for 5-HMF derivatives, contributing to Europe’s transition toward safer, more sustainable and resilient industrial value chains.

5-HMF is a plant-derived molecule obtained through the dehydration of renewable sugars and is emerging as a strategic platform in green chemistry. Thanks to its reactive functional groups, it can be converted into a wide range of high-value derivatives, including FDCA, a precursor to bio-based polymers such as PEF — a sustainable alternative to PET.

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