Q&A with Bison Bag’s Tom Seymour on Startups and Sustainable Growth

Bison Bag Company, a flexible packaging manufacturer based in Lockport, NY, has long been a critical partner to food and agriculture innovators across Upstate New York.  

In this Q&A, Grow-NY mentor Tom Seymour, a business development specialist at Bison Bag, shares how the company’s roots as a family-owned business shape its commitment to working with startups, supporting regional growth, and strengthening the food and ag entrepreneurship ecosystem.  

With an enthusiasm for entrepreneurship and local businesses, Seymour serves as the Executive Chairperson for the Institute of Packaging Professionals National Board of Directors and is the President of the Associated New York State Food Processors. Drawing on decades of experience in flexible packaging, food manufacturing, and industry leadership, Seymour discusses why partnering with founders matters, how Bison Bag supports emerging brands, and what kinds of innovation will help the region continue to thrive. 

In this conversation, Seymour explains how Bison Bag works with founders, shares lessons from the field, and reflects on what it takes to build and scale a food or agriculture business. 

Question: How — and why — does Bison Bag work with startups? 

Bison Bag works with startups because we remember exactly where we came from. Although we have grown significantly over the decades, we are still a family owned and operated company that embodies the spirit of entrepreneurship. Someone once held the door open for us, and we believe in doing the same for the next generation of food and agriculture innovators. 

Startups are the lifeblood of regional growth. They push boundaries, create new markets, and strengthen our food and ag ecosystem. Partnering with them is not just good business for us; it is part of who we are. Our motto is simple: your success is our success. When a founder wins, our entire community wins. 

Question: What do you see as the greatest strengths Bison Bag provides to its food and ag community? 

Bison Bag’s greatest strength is our deep commitment to the people who feed and fuel this region. Since the late 1960s we have been rooted in Upstate New York agriculture and food manufacturing, and that history gives us perspective, relationships, and trust that cannot be replicated. 

We offer a rare combination in today’s packaging landscape. We are big enough to deliver serious capability, quality, and consistency, yet still small enough to care. We are not a massive corporate machine. We are accessible, nimble, and invested in the success of every customer, from emerging brands to established processors. 

Our network across agriculture, food production, distribution, and innovation is truly powerful. We help connect founders with co-packers, mentors, suppliers, investors, and resources. At Bison Bag, people do not just get packaging; they get a partner who wants them to succeed as much as they do. 

Question: What kind of technical innovation would Bison Bag benefit from seeing grow in the region? 

The most meaningful innovation for Bison Bag is continued growth in regional food and agricultural production. When our local ecosystem thrives, we thrive. More co-packers, more processors, more specialty food makers, and more scalable manufacturing capacity all make our region stronger and allow us to remain the preferred local flexible packaging supplier. 

We want to see innovation that supports that progress: smarter production technologies, enhanced food safety systems, material efficiency, sustainable agriculture practices, and supply chain modernization. Anything that strengthens our local network helps ensure that brands do not need to look to giant out-of-state packaging corporations for support. 

We believe deeply that the future of food and ag in this region is bright, and with continued innovation and collaboration, we can keep building a thriving ecosystem where local businesses choose local partners and win together.