Sustainable wine packaging specialist Packamama has launched manufacturing operations in South Africa, partnering with local polymer producer Safripol and packaging manufacturer Polyoak.

The launch, which marks the company’s first manufacturing base on the African continent, is a key step in Packamama’s strategy to localise production in major wine-producing regions. Via the new hub, Packamama’s flat wine bottles will now be produced in Cape Town using locally sourced recycled PET (rPET).

Production began quietly following Cape Wine 2025, with Packamama opting to delay a formal announcement until the end of the year. Since then, the business says it has already manufactured a six-figure volume of bottles, demonstrating consistent output and readiness to scale.

“This is exactly how we believe sustainable packaging should scale – locally made, commercially proven and built with world-class partners,” Santiago Navarro, founder and CEO of Packamama, said.

“Producing Packamama bottles in Cape Town using South African recycled PET is something we are incredibly proud of.”

The bottles are made using Packamama’s proprietary material stack, designed to protect wine quality and shelf life while delivering a substantially lower carbon footprint than traditional glass. The company said the partnership also supports Safripol’s ‘Let’s Plastic Responsibly’ campaign, reinforcing the role of recycled plastic within a circular economy.

South Africa is currently the world’s seventh-largest wine producer, according to the OIV, and the sixth most popular wine country among UK consumers, according to the WSTA. Packamama said these dynamics made local manufacturing both strategically and economically compelling.

The company is now inviting interest from South African producers and international retailers seeking locally made, lower-carbon alternatives to glass bottles, as it continues to expand its global production footprint.