Minnesota's Largest Paper Mill Now Churning Out Pulp for Textile Mills

In a hopeful sign for the state’s forest industries, Sappi Fine Paper in Cloquet, MN, announced Wednesday that its $170 million conversion from making pulp for paper to making pulp for clothing has been successful. The mill reached its production goal of 1,050 tons per day of what’s known as chemical cellulose—in September.

The new pulp, which is the hottest forest industry product on the market, is generally sold to textile mills in Asia, blended with other materials and made into thread. Fast-growing demand for the product has outlined one possible future for a forestry industry struggling with the terminal