From cookable packaging to Spanish-teaching beer, here are some things that made us say “That’s Interesting” in the studio this week.
Delicious packaging.
Imagine you could eat packaging… The world would be a much cleaner place. Meal-box brand, Gousto, has made the first step by swapping its plastic stock-cube wrappers for edible pea-protein packaging. Even though a stock-cube might seem like a small and unoffending food stuff, Gousto projects could save 17 tonnes of plastic waste annually. What other single-wrap products could be replaced with edible packaging?
Reduce, rethink, re-eat here
New games.
Nike has created its own (virtual) wonderland. Nikeland is a free-to-play arena within popular gaming platform Roblox, where fans can connect, create and compete in fun and exciting games. So as to not venture too far from the brand’s proposition, Nikeland also encourages real-life exercise via integration with player’s smartphone accelerometer – allowing them to track and reward movement in the real world. New avenues in the digital world bring about more potential for brands to connect with people in exciting ways.
Start playing here
Your new sous-chef!
Social media app, Snapchat, is spicing up its platform. A new feature, Food Scan, allows users to scan specific ingredients with their camera and then be served up suggestions for relevant recipes. Food Scan currently recognises 1200 ingredients and can recommend more than 4500, making the app a formidable sous-chef. Starting out with filters, AR has been core to Snapchat’s appeal. This is an example experimenting of the brand and progressing its offering. Social media has evolved from basic messaging apps to holistic services that deal with everything from re-selling to, now, cooking. What else could be integrated?
Start scanning and cooking here
“Dame una…por favor!”
To launch its new ‘Hard Seltzer Limonada’, Corona has teamed-up with language learning app Duolingo to create a voice-activated vending machine that wants people to speak Spanish. Those who can order a seltzer with the right pronunciation are rewarded with a free can, whilst those who can’t are offered a one-month trial of Duolingo Plus. The pandemic saw lots of people fill their free time with new hobbies and upskilling. Will this continue as normal life resumes? Or will all those learning languages get back on the beers?
Start practising here