|School:||Georgia State University|
|Team:||Kalib Moore, Lisa Garan, Taneisha White|
Today’s consumers are not impressed with the functionality of the modern day cereal box. They are forced to deal with obstacles such as its inability to remain closed, food getting trapped between the bag and the box, and lack of freshness due to improper closing. BITE BOX was invented to not only create a solution to these packaging flaws, but also provide a more sustainable way to produce the beloved breakfast food.
The secret to BITE BOX is its innovative inner mechanics. What was once a plastic bag, is now an aluminum bag with an accordion folding structure. This accordion will act as a spring within the product, allowing air to be push out of the bag in one easy step to preserve freshness. This aluminum bag is attached to the top of the lid and is dense enough to hold the weight of the cereal, as well as be folded back into its accordion structure. This also only forces the consumer to go through one step to open both the box and the cereal bag. Aluminum is one of the most recycled materials, it saves more than 90% of the energy required verses producing new metal. Providing it to be not only an environmentally friendly solution, but also remain cost effective. BITE BOX preserves the usage of the cardboard exterior; however, prints with soy inks to utilize renewable resources. This printing process will also allow for an easier de-inking process during recycling.
BITE BOX is not only better for the environment, but also the consumer. With the standard cereal box, even when there is only one bowl of cereal left, there is still a large box to store in the pantry. With BITE BOX, as cereal is eaten, the accordion structure allows for compact storing. To do this, after pouring the cereal, push the top down to expel the air, then close the spout on top that is made of the same biodegradable material as the box. The pressure will cause the box to shrink over time of consumption and slowly take up less space. When the box is empty, the consumer can easily pull off the top half of the box to separate the aluminum bag from the cardboard box, allowing for easy recycling of each material.
Along with the compression of the box, comes the ability for the consumer to be aware of how much cereal remains. The side of the box contains marks to give the consumer a general idea of how many servings are left. This feature will give consumers a better visual of how much they have left till they should purchase more, as well for those who are more serving size conscious.
BITE BOX was inspired by the sounds of a morning family breakfast, which is reflected through its copy and bold visual elements. It is the perfect pairing of functionality and design to create a better start to any consumer’s day.