Packaging systems for reduced food waste 2
| Reference number | |
| Coordinator | INNVENTIA AB |
| Funding from Vinnova | SEK 4 738 000 |
| Project duration | May 2015 - August 2017 |
| Status | Completed |
| Venture | Challenge-driven innovation - Phase 2 Collaboration |
| Call | Challenge-driven innovation - Stage 2 Collaboration 2014 (spring) |
Important results from the project
Consumers around the world want help with decreasing food waste but need suggestions as to how to do this. With good design and information, packaging can intuitively guide consumer behaviour in this regard. To reach this goal however, actors in the value chain must collaborate to create understanding and be consistent in the information that reaches consumers. The project produced packaging solutions for three products. The experience and results are summarized in an inspirational guide for the packaging industry on how to develop packaging solutions that reduce food waste.
Expected long term effects
Three packaging solutions were developed that reduce food waste within their value chains. They are expected to be well received by consumers. Despite utilizing more packaging material, calculations showed a positive environmental impact. Two of the solutions were developed further and are expected to be introduced to the marketplace. In addition, the project also gave partners a better understanding of the products’ entire value chains thanks to frequent and intensive collaboration. The main findings are summarized in an inspirational Guide for the packaging industry.
Approach and implementation
The project was run as three confidential sub-projects, one per product: salsa in a glass jar, salad in a bag (small leaf mixture) and chilled rice porridge packaged in a plastic tube. The sub-projects had three phases, current situation analysis, idea generation and prototyping, and verification. In practice much of the work was carried out via well-attended working meetings that generated lively discussions and responses. As the sub-projects were run separately, the culture and work methods varied somewhat between them.