It’s a Wrap!

Two prestigious design awards were awarded to Naama Nicotra, a recent graduate of the Industrial Design Department at the Faculty of Design.

Naama Nicotra

The competitive international awards – one from the German Design Council and another from the DesignWanted Magazine -- were presented to Naama in recognition of the innovative concept which she created within the framework of her final B.Sc. project, developed under the supervision of Prof. Naama Steinbock from Faculty of Design.

NakedPak is a series of iconic food dishes that are wrapped in edible and soluble bio-plastic cover, made from agar, a material extracted from algae. The dishes are dried and ready to cook, without any plastic or paper wrap, making every part of the product edible, thereby creating a true zero-waste food packaging system.

The wrapper includes all the flavors and seasonings required for the dish. After being cooked in a pot of boiling water, the wrapper melts and releases its flavors into the dish.

The NakedPak series includes vegetable soup, spaghetti in tomato sauce, rice in green Thai curry, lasagna, and ice cream, but the principle can be applied to many other food dishes.

On the left: an ice cream wrapper | On the right: a vegetable soup wrapper

"The project started out as an attempt to find an environmental and experiential solution that would replace the plastic and paper packaging of food," says Naama. "I found a substance that is extracted from seaweed and brewed it with other substances to make it into the packaging material. Instead of packing in plastic bags, the dishes come in a dried form and can be washed and then cooked”.

Prof. Naama Steinbock: "We presented Naama with the challenge of formulating a pathbreaking sustainable path in a world that is constantly evolving. The project presents the first-time application of an existing material (agave) which, when used to wrap food, creates a completely different and unique experience for consumption and eating. The project has the potential to significantly reduce the waste of materials in relation to food packaging - an important environmental issue being debated by legislators around the world. These prestigious awards are, in my opinion, just the beginning of Naama’s journey in the field, one which will bring with it many more successes along the way. The way in which she motivates herself to action is a wonderful example for every designer and certainly for our students and graduates."

Naama's winning project was presented at the exhibition One & Twenty which presented the works of 21 young designers (students and recent graduates) and was organized by the German Design Council.

The second exhibition organized virtually by DesignWanted presented works of the 13 award winners based on the theme “Smart Home.”

Posted: 01/05/2023