Lighter-weight packaging and a sharply shortened sourcing supply chain yield responsible improvements for Tessemae’s organic products.

August 17, 2022

2 Min Read
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Image courtesy of Tessemae's

Tessemae's organic salad dressings, dips, and marinades provide clean-label peace of mind for healthy-minded consumers. This summer the Baltimore-based brand made a packaging change that provides a healthier amount of sustainability while bringing offshore bottle sourcing closer to home.

"Since our inception in 2009, Tessemae's has always been a purpose driven company,” says Greg Vetter, CEO. “Identifying sustainable solutions that increase renewability while maintaining quality is a natural course of evolution for us."

The change is most apparent visually, where the updated graphics design with eye-catching artwork marks a new chapter in the brand's legacy.

The revitalized packaging redesign went beyond the aesthetics to functional improvements for consumers, for the brand, and for the environment.

The revamped packaging design is anchored by a new recyclable plastic PET bottle that replaces a glass bottle.

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A logical and sustainably minded decision.

Katie Seighman, VP of Supply Chain, explains the brand’s reasoning behind the switch.

“PET is 100% recyclable and the most recycled plastic in the United States, almost every municipal recycling program in North America accepts PET containers. Bottle-to-bottle recycling entails the sorting and washing of plastic into granules or flakes. These granules are then used to produce a preform, from which a new bottle is blown.

“PET uses less energy and creates fewer greenhouse gasses than glass manufacturing. Also, PET is easier and cheaper to recycle than glass and can be recycled into more products than glass.”

A change in supplier geography was another sustainability win.

“The previous glass bottle was sourced from abroad,” Seighman notes, “while the new bottle is produced locally in the US. Carbon emissions are decreased due the less fuel needed for packaging transportation.

“Additionally, outbound shipping to customers becomes more efficient — we are able to ship more bottles per truck and reduce the overall number of trucks used annually to ship products.” 

The brand provides the specific numbers for inbound and outbound bottle loads:

Inbound: 70,200 glass bottles versus 138,600 PET bottles, which is nearly a 200% increase.

Outbound: 37,260 glass bottles versus 48,000 PET bottles, which is nearly a 30% increase.

There's an added benefit for consumers: It’s the same 10-ounce net-weight size in a wider-mouth bottle that makes pouring more convenient.

The revamped packaging encompasses the brand’s full product portfolio and will be accessible on shelves nationwide at retailers including Amazon.

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