The Brief
The brief of this "Beyond the Box Packaging" course was to design a visual as well as form packaging for a hypothetical food brand.
The Aim
The aim of this project is to design a sustainable food grade packaging for a hypothetical food brand, that sells south Indian breakfast on transit stations like Airports, Train stations as well as Bus stops. The three main items to be sold under this brand are Idli, Vadas and Appams.
The Brainstorming
The process of brainstorming started by creating a mood board, after deciding upon a name for the brand, which here is 'oota on the way'. Logo iterations, prototypes and sketches were also made.
The Colours
The colours were inspired by South India, and various elements in that region i.e. banana leaf.
The Name
"Oota" in Kannada (South Indian language spoken in Karnataka) means:
• board
• lunch/dinner
• dish
• fare
• feast
• food
• hostel
• meal
• repast
• lunch/dinner
• dish
• fare
• feast
• food
• hostel
• meal
• repast
Pronunciation:
ūṭa, oota
ūṭa, oota
The Inspiration
I went to the super market and got inspired by these different South Indian, ready to make batters.
The Packaging Design
The logo was placed on a circular base, as the primary packaging was meant to be areca leaf soup bowls.
Once the labels were ready, the next challenge was to design a form for the packaging. I wanted to stick to minimum wastage as well as the cultural roots of the form. The name gives the idea of the brand providing easy stackable, sustainable and transportable packaging, thus I made the packaging with brown paper, and the boxes can be stacked upon one another, to make as many combinations as possible.
In my pictures, I used Areca leaf bowls that are 100% bio-degradable and compostable. These bowls are extremely hygienic and non-toxic. They are so lightweight that they are widely used in the southern subcontinent of India for the purpose of eating. Thus, it makes it easier for the packaging to be adapted and accepted by the target audience. In the mock ups, I changed
The packaging used in the mockups are mushroom-based packaging. The outer shell and roots of a mushroom contain mycelia. When mixed with natural ingredients like oats, the mixture binds together to form a mouldable solid. Unlike polystyrene, sustainable packaging made with mushrooms can biodegrade in a garden within weeks.
The packaging here thus has an essence of the cultures of this part of the country, as well as a modern take on sustainability and producing less waste.
The main pouch to take away, is made of brown paper (sustainable).
The appams were packed in these container. Easily stackable.
The idlis were packed in these container. Easily stackable.
The vadas were packed in these container. Easily stackable.
Experimentation and prototypes.
