According to the market report "Fluff Pulp Market Outlook to 2029" released by Smithers, global fluff pulp consumption reached 7.3 million air-dried tons (adt) in 2024. Among this, sanitary products such as adult incontinence products, baby diapers, and feminine care products accounted for 89.7% of the total usage, with the global fluff pulp sales volume hitting $9.7 billion. Since 2020, the overall sales of fluff pulp have maintained a steady growth with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.9%. The price of fluff pulp peaked at $2,200 per adt in 2022 and then fell to approximately $1,260 per adt in 2024, mainly affected by global structural capacity issues. Pulp mills are taking measures to address the problems, but new projects will take time to come online. Additionally, geopolitical factors such as China-US trade disputes have added extra uncertainty in the short term.
In developing countries, the demand for diapers and Feminine Hygiene products continues to grow as disposable incomes rise. In developed countries, birth rates remain stable, but the elderly population is increasing steadily. With advancing age, they are likely to experience incontinence issues and require adult incontinence products to maintain an active and normal lifestyle. Against this backdrop, adult incontinence products have become the primary application area for fluff pulp, using around 2.4 million adt of fluff pulp in 2024. Fluff pulp production is highly dependent on certain pine tree species. These pines grow in temperate regions, meaning while demand for fluff pulp is global, production is not. There are only three major fluff pulp production regions worldwide: North America has the largest capacity and serves as the main export market; South America is expanding production; and European capacity is primarily for regional consumption. In contrast, Asia accounts for 41.4% of global fluff pulp demand but has minimal local production capacity.
In North America, three companies—Georgia-Pacific, International Paper, and PaperExcellence-Domtar—control 77.4% of the fluff pulp capacity. Between 2020 and 2025, they closed several key fluff pulp mills in the United States, leading to reduced supply and price increases. Capacity expansion projects in the region are limited, mainly including Georgia-Pacific’s $80 million investment to expand capacity at its Alabama River mill. Over the next five years, U.S. fluff pulp capacity is expected to remain essentially stable at around 6.5 million adt per year.
An important factor influencing fluff pulp market supply is "switchable mills," which can alternate production between fluff pulp and other pulp types. The market’s reliance on such capacity is growing: Smithers data shows that 3.4 million tons of switchable capacity were used for fluff pulp production in 2024. With few new fluff pulp mills expected to be built in the next five years and more aging equipment projected to be shut down, the market’s demand for switchable mills will become more urgent. This could intensify price volatility, which will be more pronounced if demand for other pulp types changes.
New fluff pulp capacity additions will be concentrated primarily in South America. The region’s share of global supply has risen from 6.7% in 2019 to 11.7% in 2024, with output reaching 915,000 adt last year. Several companies have announced investment plans: Klabin is investing $3 billion to expand its production base in Santa Catarina, Brazil, ultimately adding 500,000 to 600,000 tons of fluff pulp capacity; Suzano previously announced a 340,000 adt fluff pulp capacity expansion in Brazil at the end of 2023; and Arauco will continue to increase capacity at its Alto Paraná mill in Paraguay. Through these investments and others not mentioned in this report, South America’s fluff pulp capacity is expected to reach 1.46 million adt by 2029.
