ID | Sacchita

Sustainable Packaging for Railway Service

Client Brief

A client project under Madlab for the client ID Fresh Food.
The brief was to design sustainable, cost-effective packaging for ID’s railway segment (fresh menu) with freedom to explore alternative, non-plastic materials.

Aim

Design environment-friendly packaging that is easy to store, carry, dispose and eat-from while preventing leakage of liquid food.

Key Challenges

selecting an appropriate material (natural vs reusable)
packaging liquid items without plastic usage
separating wet + dry food without mixing
making consumption easy while standing (railway context)
ensuring stackability and thermal comfort

Role:
Product Designer. Designed one of the final packaging outcomes that went into production

Duration:
3 months

Industry
Packaging + Material Innovation

ID

Research Approach

We conducted on-ground visits to ID outlets in Chennai to analyse current packaging issues.We observed:

Leakage led to liquid mixing with solid items → sogginess
Aluminium packs became too hot to hold while standing on platforms
Poor balance → difficult to eat upright
Multiple parcels needed to be stackable and easy to carry
We also analysed ID’s menu categories to design compartment logic based on food behaviour (liquid / semi-liquid / solid).

ID Food Analysis

Material Exploration

CLAY

BAGASSE

BANANA LEAF

ALUMINIUM

FOIL

CARD

BOARD

Banana Leaf

Pros

Easy to procure and transport
Portrays the nature of south Indian packaging and enhances the overall aesthetics

Cons

Can be used mainly as secondary packaging
Cannot be stored for a long time

Cardboard

Pros

Cardboard can be recycled
It provides a sturdy structure

Cons

Cannot be used for liquid food
Only geometrical shapes can be formed and not organic

Aluminium

Bagasse

Pros

Aesthetically appealing
Can be sealed using banana leaves/ aluminium/butter paper

Cons

Environmental impact is higher during manufacturing process (considering water and power use)
Final cost is higher then most options

Areca Nut

Pros

Easy manufacturing process
Strong and sturdy to use
Can be shaped and compartmentalized

Cons

Cannot be leak-proof as structure does not comes out uniform in manufacturing
Raw material quality is inconsistent

Clay

Pros

Available in multiple shapes and sizes
Cheap manufacturing process
Keeps food warm for long amounts of time

Cons

Leakage from one compartment to another

Pros

Same manufacturing as plastic (available in numerous options)

Cons

Biodegradable only under Industrial conditions
(collection and segregation is hard after usage)

After analyzing the various pros and cons of different materials, we ideated taking into consideration, the

• Durability

• Environment-friendly material

• Stackability

• Ease of use

• Least material wastage

• Spill Proof

Ideation

Prototypes

Trial 1

Material: Cardboard + Aluminium/Bagasse/Kullad pots

Ease of use: Can be held with one hand

Stackability : 70% efficient

Spillage: 95% prevented

Material: Aluminium + Cardboard

Ease of use: Hard to hold with one hand

Stackability: 9 7% efficient

Spillage: 80%prevented

Trial 2

Concept 1

Rubber Bands

Banana Leaf

Burnt Banana Leaf

Cardboard

Packaging

Clay Pots

Assembly and Packaging

Unwrapping

Concept 2

Rubber Bands

Burnt Banana Leaf

Banana Leaf

Clay Pots

Cardboard

Packaging

Assembly and Packaging

Unwrapping

Baggase Concepts

Experimenting with the lips to provide a sound structure and at the same time prevent spillage

Separating the compartments using multiple depressions to prevent spillage
Separating the compartments with an extrusion by increasing area

Inspired from a tiffin box and exploring the possibility of completely separating the liquid from the solid food with the main dish on top and the liquid underneath

Separate lids for chutney and sambhar with one overall lid to prevent spillage with the application of pressure from the top lid.

Basic

Kids Meal

Combo

Tiffin Box