Continuous innovations in molded fiber are resulting in new types of packaging that companies say are more customizable and cost-competitive than plastic.

“The molded fiber industry overall is exploding,” said Joseph Grygny, founder and executive director emeritus of the International Molded Fiber Association.

While molded fiber isn’t new, the industry continues to expand. Newer use cases and technologies, such as dry molded fiber, offer compostable alternatives to polystyrene foam that are being used in a range of industries.

According to a 2007 paper by researchers at the Delft University of Technology and Michigan State University, the basic process for producing molded pulp can be tracked back many years. In the late 19th century, James Ashley patented his egg case maker and later received patents for further improvements to the machine. And in 1903, Martin Keyes patented a machine for making molded pulp.

Today, egg cartons and other food packaging remain common examples. Outside of the food industry, molded fiber is increasingly used as protective packaging for electronics and other household items. It can be made from a variety of materials — including wood, straw and bagasse — and custom tools can shape the pulp into the desired shape, size and thickness.

The molded fiber packaging market is expected to continue growing as consumers look for plastic alternatives. According to recent data from ResearchAndMarkets.com, the molded fiber packaging market is expected to grow from $13.3 billion in 2023 to nearly $18 billion by 2028.

"There's a lot of new ways of making molded fiber products that in the past had not been available," said Grygny. 

PulPac, a Sweden-based company, is one business innovating in this space. The company is partnering with machine manufacturers to develop production lines using their patented technology. 

“We have seen the market mature,” said Chief Commercial Officer Sanna Fager, pointing to growth in the takeout food sector as one example.

Last year, PulPac announced a partnership with Matrix Pack, a global producer of food and beverage packaging products. Matrix Pack will use the company’s technology to manufacture lids for hot and cold takeout drinks.

Fager said that coffee lids are an ideal single-use product in which to deploy dry molded fiber in place of plastic, and single-use cutlery is also an option. PulPac said the dry molded fiber process it created helps cut down on water use, among other benefits.

“With our technology … we can design and tailor the thickness of the product to be quite sturdy,” she said.

PulPac has teamed up with PA Consulting to launch the Bottle Collective, which partners with brands to introduce dry molded fiber bottles. This year, PulPac and PA Consulting also launched the Blister Pack Collective to replace plastic pharmaceutical tablet blister packs with dry molded fiber options.

Dry molded fiber also offers a manufacturing proposition that could put it in reach for more companies at a price point that works. 

“The ecosystem around these machines is quite similar to what you have today in plastic,” said Fager. “You don’t need to have big water slurry tanks.”

Fager added that some companies who use both plastic and fiber previously needed to source fiber products from overseas despite producing plastic locally, whereas Pulpac’s smaller and less expensive machines offer a step into production.

Finland-based Huhtamaki is another business that sees increased opportunities in the broader molded fiber category.

In 2022, the company announced that its manufacturing site in Alf, Germany, would switch focus from plastics to smooth molded fiber. Huhtamaki also recently started ramping up commercial production at its molded fiber plant in Hammond, Indiana, where the company previously estimated it would invest $100 million.

“We believe molded fiber plays an important role in finding new innovations to protect food safely in more environmentally sustainable ways,” said Michael Hodges, the company’s North American vice president of sustainability and communications, via email.

The company views the egg cartons made in the Hammond facility, manufactured from 100% recycled North American material, as a growth opportunity.

“We expect the demand for egg cartons in the USA to reach 4.3 billion packs in 2025,” Hodges added.

In Maine, Tanbark manufactures molded fiber using two production lines in its pilot facility. The company can offer products with embossing, color and textures. CEO and co-founder Melissa LaCasse explained that the company’s scale and approach allows the team to fill lower-volume orders, which she said can be price-comparable with plastic. 

"The plastic industry charges for low-volume custom solutions," LaCasse said. "I think paper-based packaging is the best replacement for single-use plastic."

While some people may still assume that plastic options are cheaper than compostable alternatives, Tanbark said the lower volume makes it easier to achieve parity. The company is seeing interest from the food and beverage space and the cosmetics industry. It can also produce high-end micro-orders for the medical and bioscience industries. 

For these micro-orders, LaCasse said, “we’re finding we don’t just have parity, we can beat the prices that they’re getting from the plastics and foam industry.”

Tanbark also sees growth potential for customers that are interested in molded fiber’s environmental credentials.

“We’re a byproduct of a well-managed working forest,” said LaCasse, noting that Tanbark is located close to an abundance of raw material. “We’re using virgin wood fiber from down the road.”

Grygny pointed out that molded fiber production can generally keep waste very low, as any defective products can go back into the pulper to make new products. 

"There's a lot of activity going on with reducing energy cost," he said, adding that manufacturers can reuse the heat generated and water used during production. 

Proponents also say that molded fiber has better end-of-life options than certain alternatives. The material is often accepted in curbside recycling programs, or it can be composted in certain home and industrial systems.

“High-quality fiber can be recycled several times,” said Hodges, noting the potential to do so up to 25 times.

"Almost all molded fiber materials are compostable by some standards," said Grygny, but he added that in some cases, sturdier packing items made from thick-walled material might naturally take longer to compost than a thinner-walled material. 

Even as the molded fiber industry expands, LaCasse said there is still plenty of room for more vendors.

"There is a huge market opportunity for however many companies want to and need to move over from plastic,” she said.