PlantMe Packaging
My Role: UX researcher/ UX designer
I participated in the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) competition with four other group members. The challenge was to rethink fast-moving consumer goods and use the idea of circular economy in our design. My group decided to focus on the issue of plastic and packaging waste. Our solution is a seed-infused biodegradable packaging that can be disposed of by burying it in soil. This idea is a B2B model, targeting to sell the biodegradable packaging to existing snack companies.
My team narrowed down a list of items within the topic of the circular economy to explore and do research on. In the end, we decided to focus on the problem of single-use plastic and exploring ideas on reusable packaging. Some of us are avid hikers, we could all connect over the issue of litter both within our cities and in natural parks and campgrounds. Plastic waste is a growing issue endangering wildlife and takes thousands of years to decompose.
The problem
108 billion of snack packaging were sold last year alone…
Currently, metalized polypropylene is one of the most used materials for snack packaging. The material is not biodegradable, if it ended up in a landfill, it will cause harm to the soil, affecting the sustainable use of the land.
User Research
I created a short survey to get an understanding of people’s awareness and opinions on the topic of plastic waste and snack preferences. As well as factors that contribute to purchase decisions. The survey was completed by 95 users from ages 18 to 65. Participants ages 19-34 cared significantly more about corporate social responsibility and prefer to purchase from eco-conscious companies when possible. The primary deterrent from buying green products is that they are assumed to be lower in quality and durability despite generally being higher in price.
User Test
Paper Prototype
I created 8 different paper prototypes of package styles and observed users interacting with the different prototypes with real-life scenarios like packing a snack and putting it in a backpack.
Learnings
Generally, when people go for a hike they will bring a small individual snack like a Clif bar as well as a larger snack like Goldfish or trail mix with them. This meant that our ideal design should work on both levels. We found that durability and shape were the most important factors in the packaging. The packages should be easily packed into bags and pockets. The most preferred design was box 8 from the prototype. People liked it because even if the packaging got squished in their backpack, it’d bounce back easily compared to the others.
Advanced prototyping
After picking design #8, the next major step was to figure out what material we could use to create the packaging. A few options we had were using sundried grass or potato. The potato plastic was more durable compared to the dried grass material.
