Market assessment in biochar production
Supported development of a go-to-market strategy for a listed company's biochar production subsidiary.
We evaluated biochar end markets and uses, competitors, and market structure, as well as pricing scenarios, distribution, channels to market, and the role of carbon removal credits; our strategic recommendations prioritised the most attractive markets and provided robust, tailored approaches to entry and long-term growth.
Context
Our client, a listed company with a new subsidiary involved in biochar, was positioned to begin large-scale production that would increase supply ten-fold in the home market.
Eden McCallum was engaged to conduct a thorough assessment of this nascent market to inform the client’s go-to-market strategy. The central challenge was to forecast demand and pricing in multiple end-use markets with no existing use cases at scale. Furthermore, the markets were about to be fundamentally altered by the company’s own production.
Approach
Working closely with the client’s in-house biochar experts, and drawing on expert input and scientific research, our team conducted a deep dive into biochar’s benefits and economics across potential end-uses.
Engaging with industry specialists, we evaluated adoption likelihood, competitive alternatives, potential user economics and end-to-end biochar production costs (including transportation) in order to develop scenarios for potential market size, financially viable market destinations, and pricing of biochar for each use case.
Impact
Pinpointing end-use markets with the highest demand and pricing potential and attractive economics for our client, our work provided a tailored sales and product development roadmap.
The strategic recommendations laid a robust foundation for market entry and positioned the company strategically for long-term growth in the biochar sector. The company is currently ramping up production and planning its more detailed market entry in the highest priority end uses.