This week, the Greater Yuma Economic Development Corporation (GYEDC), in partnership with the City of Yuma and the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA), announced that Kimberly-Clark is building a $100 million, 50,000-square-foot pilot facility in Yuma, Arizona.
The project is currently under construction and expected to create 50 full-time jobs.
"Yuma offers a unique combination of agricultural expertise, natural resources, and talent that make it an ideal location for our alternative natural fiber facility," said Michael Todd, Vice President and Managing Director of Kimberly-Clark.
The Yuma pilot facility will extract fibers from hesperaloe, a low-water-use and rapidly renewable plant native to Arizona and elsewhere in the Southwest United States, which has the potential to be used in the company’s future hygiene products. The pilot facility is expected to be complete and begin operations in 2027.
Hesperaloe was selected after Kimberly-Clark research scientists evaluated more than 70 fiber candidates across performance, sustainability and cost criteria. The plant, when combined with the company’s proprietary technologies, yields a rapidly renewable natural fiber source that carries suitable performance and quality standards.
The company is also collaborating with growers, technical experts, and community stakeholders in Arizona, California, and across the broader U.S. Southwest to evaluate hesperaloe's potential as a year-round source of agricultural and economic opportunity.
