Melissa LaCasse, Tanbark
Updated: April 14, 2025
How To
How to become part of a sustainable supply chain (without pricing yourself out of the market)
By Melissa LaCasse, Tanbark Molded Fiber Products
Price is not the only way to compete. Take time to understand your industry and consumer trends. Focus on what your customers value — whether it’s quality, convenience, innovation or brand alignment — before returning to price.
We are a B2B manufacturer. Our bottom line depends on both our direct sales to product manufacturers and on their sales to consumers. In our case, consumer demand for sustainable goods and services created a market opportunity for recyclable and compostable molded fiber products and packaging.
There’s real opportunity in consumer demand for sustainable goods and services.
In September 2024, according to Deloitte research, 52% of consumers reported making a sustainability-based purchase in the previous four weeks — a figure that has held steady since 2021 — and many are willing to make tradeoffs in price, order time and special disposal processes to support sustainability. Since 2022, nearly 60% of executives have reported growing consumer pressure to adopt sustainable practices, and many are building sustainable supply chains to address the pressure. Yet 21% report that they have trouble finding suppliers.
That 21% represents our opportunity, and yours.
There are other ways to compete.
Business opportunity knocks when supply does not keep up with demand. There is a lot of packaging that could be made from molded fiber instead of plastic; Tanbark allows companies to make better choices and meet sustainability goals. There are times when our packaging costs more than a competing plastic product, and there are times when it does not. Price is always a factor, though, and not every customer is willing to pay a higher price for a sustainable product.
Nonetheless, we have never had to concede on price, because:
We do not insist on large minimum purchases. This makes us an attractive option for smaller manufacturers, particularly those whose brand depends on attractive packaging. Many small to medium enterprises recognize the benefits of molded fiber but are frustrated by minimum order quantities that would supply them for years or decades. Likewise, even large manufacturers need test runs for products that may never reach the wider market, as do smaller new product developers.
We are U.S.-based, which reduces other costs. Our product is an alternative to packaging manufactured overseas, which is by far the majority share of the market, and largely plastic. Without tariffs, we have sales advantages due to ease of communications, shorter lead times and a way to avoid the logistics of international sales.
Sustainability messaging boosts sales and brand value. We can make a convincing case that recyclable packaging increases sales of consumer products. Consumers have indicated that they are willing to pay more for recyclable packaging. According to CannedGood.org, even if recyclable packaging costs more, the lost margin can be made up in higher sales volume without changing the unit price. There is room to increase the unit price to make up the cost if increased sales volume is not enough.
Our product is innovative in an industry where innovation is needed. Our molded fiber technology is helping to boost Maine’s timber industry, which has faced declining demand for pulpwood as paper use has dropped. The process we use was invented here in Maine, which was a leading manufacturer of molded wood fiber packaging. The industry was overshadowed by the plastics revolution of the 1950s and 60s. We leveraged new technology in molded fiber to make this material accessible to the many small and medium sized brands wanting to capitalize on this trend while adding jobs to Maine.
Takeaway: Consumers want their purchases to be sustainable, meaning recyclable or compostable — or both. Businesses want sustainable supply chains but cannot find the sustainable suppliers they want.
That’s an opportunity. Look for these opportunities, understand your product’s value, then set your prices with confidence.
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