Nachhaltige Verpackungskonzepte von Tomorrow Machine

Das schwedische Design Studio Tomorrow Machine hat jüngst eine Serie von innovativen und nachhaltigen Verpackungen kreiert, zum Beispiel für Reis, Olivenöl und Himbeersaft. Hanna Billqvist, eine der Designerinnen des Studios, spricht im exklusiven Interview mit GIM Radar über die preisgekrönten und spannenden Verpackungskonzepte.

Who is behind “Tomorrow Machine”? Sounds futuristic…
We are a Swedish design studio based in Stockholm and Paris, specialized in package, product and food concepts. We believe in looking at the world from a creative point of view to shape the innovations of tomorrow.

Last year your studio won the Dieline Packaging Design Awards 2013 for Sustainable Packaging  – Congratulations!  What is the idea behind the concept of this packages?
We started this project by asking ourselves “Is it reasonable that it takes several years for a milk carton to decompose naturally, when the milk goes sour after a week? “ This “Too Shall Pass” is a series of food packages were the packaging has the same short life span as the foods they contain. The package and its content are working in symbiosis. Our inspiration is fruit peel and how nature itself packages food.

Is it also about reducing waste?
Yes, the biggest advantage to the packaging is that they decompose naturally (thus reduces waste) and are made from renewable eco friendly sources. When we created “This Too Shall Pass” we focused a lot on finding an alternative to using plastic as a packaging material. When we have been looking for materials to replace plastics, we have not just been looking for that one universal material, but think we need to use different materials in different situations.

Does the packaging work with every type of food?
No it doesn’t. The packaging is designed to contain certain types of food, the secret behind “This Too Shall Pass” is that the packaging and contents do not react with each other. The smoothie package for instance could also work with fresh cream, juice or any other liquid product that has a short life-span. The rice package also works for other types of grain foods, and the oil package for any food that is oil-based.

A look into the future: is it possible to switch the type of packaging in the food industry to these kinds of “edible” concepts? Maybe not “en masse” but in some areas or categories?
Yes, we hope and believe that this is possible in a near future. We have had a lot of interest in the project and are currently in the early stages of developing two of the packages for companies in the food industry.

That sounds really exciting. I’m curious if we can see your idea of packaging in a food market someday. Many thanks for the interview Hanna!
Thank you – It was my pleasure.