Be Brothers

What Be Brothers does

Be Brothers, operating under the legal name Soyez Frères SA, is a French family-owned manufacturer of paper drinking straws and related cellulose-based food-service products, headquartered at a single production facility in Donzy, Nièvre, that it has occupied since relocating from the Paris region in 1958. The company traces its origins to 1832, originally processing feathers for fashion, bedding, and sporting goods, and pivoted into straw manufacturing after World War I, first producing paraffin-paper and then polypropylene straws before committing more than €8 million to a paper-and-cellulose transition in response to the EU single-use plastic ban. Its core product lines are Cocori'Straw (standard 7.3mm-diameter paper straws for cafés, hotels, and restaurants), Bubble Cocori'Straw (12mm-diameter individually wrapped paper straws for bubble tea), fast-food wrapped straws, industrial straws for fruit-juice and dairy packaging (3.8mm+ diameter, 100–500ml containers), and cheese maturing pegs; it has also launched a recyclable cardboard food-packaging line via cellulosepackaging.fr.

Name

Be Brothers

Legal name

SOYEZ FRERES SA

Website

https://soyezfreres.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1832

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Be Brothers (Soyez Frères SA) is a 1832-founded French family manufacturer of paper and cellulose drinking straws, supplying cafés, hotels, restaurants, fast-food chains, and dairy and juice manufacturers across Europe via distributors and direct enterprise contracts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Service Disposable Products

akta.pro primary industry

Flexible Paper Packaging & Wraps (kraft wrap, pouches, laminations) (IMAMAHAF)

Keywords

• Paper drinking straws
• Bubble tea straws
• Sustainable food packaging
• Food service disposables
• Cellulose packaging solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Donzy

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Paper Straw Product Sales: The company generates revenue through the manufacture and sale of paper drinking straws, including standard Cocori'Straw, Bubble Cocori'Straw for bubble tea, and custom straws for fast-food, fruit juice, and dairy industries. Products are sold in packs (bags of 140, 300, or 400; cartons of 3,200) through a network of professional distributors and wholesalers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Be Brothers (trading as Soyez Frères SA) manufactures and supplies paper drinking straws from its facility in Donzy, France. The core product line is the Cocori'Straw paper straw portfolio — standard straight straws (205mm, 7.3mm diameter) for cafés, hotels, and restaurants and a wider 12mm Bubble Cocori'Straw for bubble tea — alongside industrial straws for fruit juice and dairy packaging, cheese maturing pegs, and a newly developed cellulose-based food packaging range. Products are sold wholesale to B2B professional buyers, distributors, fast-food chains, and beverage manufacturers.

Product overview

Be Brothers (Soyez Frères) is a family-owned paper straw manufacturer founded in 1832, producing a comprehensive range of paper straws and cheese maturing products. The product portfolio centers on three core straw lines: Bubble Cocori'Straw (specialized 12mm diameter bubble tea straws with 140-pack individual wrapping), Cocori'Straw (premium 7.3mm diameter straws for CHR sector in 400-pack kraft format), and industrial straws for juice/dairy packaging (3.8mm+ diameter for 100-500ml containers). The company also manufactures cheese maturing pegs in various colors and has recently expanded into Cellulose & Packaging for cardboard food containers. All products are manufactured in France (Donzy, Nièvre) using PEFC-certified paper, emphasizing eco-responsibility and compliance with EU food safety standards.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Cocori'Straw: Paper straws for CHR (Cafés, Hotels, Restaurants), made in France with PEFC-certified paper
• Bubble Cocori'Straw

Products and services

• Cocori'Straw Standard straight paper drinking straw designed for cafés, hotels, bars, and restaurants; 100% biodegradable and recyclable with 4-hour immersion resistance in cold beverages.
• Bubble Cocori'Straw Wide-diameter (12mm) paper straw for bubble tea and specialty beverages, individually wrapped and 100% biodegradable, made from PEFC-certified blank white paper.
• Fast-Food Paper Straws Individually wrapped paper straws in printed packaging for fast-food chains, 205mm length and 7.3mm diameter, sold in bags of 300.
• Industrial Straws for Juice & Dairy Industrial paper straws compatible with beverage bricks, bottles, and pouches (100-500ml); available in white or kraft, diameters of 3.8mm or more, for dairy and fruit juice manufacturers.
• Cheese Maturing Pegs (Paillons) Plastic maturing pegs for cheese aging and presentation, available in yellow, green, red, or black colors and lengths from 50mm to 300mm, for French and European cheese manufacturers.
• Cellulose & Packaging Recyclable cardboard primary packaging (pots and lids, 52mm to 125mm diameter) for ultra-fresh products and ice cream, sold to food industry buyers as part of the company's sustainable packaging expansion.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4-hour immersion resistance in cold non-alcoholic liquids
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification)coreOthersPEFC certification ensures that the paper used in Soyez Frères' straws comes from sustainably managed forests. The company sources PEFC-certified paper to guarantee responsible forest management, supporting environmental sustainability across the supply chain.
• 360° FoodservicecoreOthersSoyez Frères adheres to the 360° Foodservice Guiding Principles charter, committing to full compliance with European and French standards for food contact, material conformity, and social responsibility in the food service industry.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• BioPak: Australia-based (now part of Huhtamaki) manufacturer of compostable packaging including paper straws. Directly comparable on certified compostable paper straw manufacturing and foodservice channel go-to-market.
• Eco-Products (Novolex): US-based manufacturer of compostable foodservice disposables including paper straws, owned by Novolex. Comparable on paper straw product line, foodservice channel distribution, and sustainability certification stack.
• Huhtamaki: Finland-based global foodservice packaging manufacturer producing fiber-based straws and tableware for QSR and foodservice customers. Most direct overlap via paper straw product lines and shared enterprise customer base (global fast-food chains).
• Aardvark Straws: US-based paper straw brand focused exclusively on premium paper straws for foodservice. Comparable on product focus (paper straws only), specialty positioning, and direct-to-operator channel mix.
• Vegware: UK-based manufacturer of compostable foodservice packaging, including paper straws, serving cafés, hotels, and restaurants across Europe. Directly comparable on product mix, channel (CHR distributors), and sustainability-led positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Pactiv Evergreen: Large US foodservice and beverage packaging manufacturer producing paper straws among a broad portfolio. Overlaps in paper straws but operates at much larger scale with a much wider foodservice product range.
• Mondi: UK-listed global paper and packaging group with consumer packaging and paper mill operations across Europe. Comparable as a European paper-converting incumbent serving FMCG customers, though not specialized in foodservice straws.
• Stora Enso: Finland/Sweden-based forest products and paper packaging major producing fiber-based packaging materials. Comparable as an upstream paper-based packaging supplier and operator in sustainable fiber packaging, though not a paper-straw specialist.
• Smurfit Kappa: Global paper-based packaging leader producing containerboard and consumer packaging. Comparable in paper converting capabilities and European customer base, though focused on corrugated and box packaging rather than straws.

Emerging players

• Lollicup (The Lollicup Company): US-based supplier of bubble tea and coffee supplies, including straws, cups, and boba accessories. Comparable as an adjacent player serving the same bubble tea end-customer base, particularly relevant to Bubble Cocori'Straw segment dynamics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/soyez-freres
• Facebookfacebook.com/soyezfreres
• Pinterestpinterest.com/soyezfreres
• YouTubeyoutube.com/soyezfreres
• Xx.com/SoyezFreres

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Be Brothers