Food Rebels Showreel
FOOD REBELS
An initiative to combat food wastage — Overthrow food beauty standards
Year Type
2024 School Project, Studio Project 2
Problem
The rapidly increasing amount of food wastage is causing Singaporeans to confront food insecurity issues. This challenge persists due to the lack of effective measures to address food wastage, particularly concerning the misconception surrounding "ugly" foods.
According to The Staits Time, 1.3 billion tonnes of perfectly edible foods are being wasted by supermarkets every year. One of the primary reasons for this food waste is the strict cosmetic standards imposed by supermarkets. Cosmetic filtering refers to the practice of selecting and presenting fruits and vegetables that are visually appealing and free from blemishes or imperfections. This often involves sorting out items that don't meet certain aesthetic standards, such as perfectly shaped or uniformly colored fruits and vegetables.
Problem Statement
How might we create an alternative avenue for unsold but edible food products to prevent them from going to waste while ensuring that Gen Ys are educated on these "ugly foods" and encouraged to buy them?
Food Rebels Website
Opening of online food event once countdown ends
Instagram Posts
The Process - Introduction to "Ugly Foods"
So, I have chosen to delve deeper into "ugly foods" and its role in exacerbating the disposal of significant amounts of edible produce. This mindset, fueled by societal standards of beauty and perfection, has resulted in the perception that visually imperfect foods such as the appearance of scars, bruises, discolouration and other defects equate to lower product quality. However, these perceptions are false!
To begin, I had to come up with 3 different solutions to mitigate this issue.
From the 3 proposed solutions, I had to chose 1 to further expand on. I was choosing between my first 2 ideas ; Super Duper Market or Food Rebels.
Competitor Insight
When researching for competitors that advocate for "ugly foods", I have realised that despite all the initiatives done to encourage people to look beyond the appearance of foods, there continues to be an increase of food wastage. This realization prompted me to recognize the lack of seriousness people were showing towards this issue. Consequently, I ensured that my solution had a powerful and bold art direction to captivate and retain people's attention to what I am advocating for.
Competitor Insight
When researching for competitors that advocate for "ugly foods", I have realised that despite all the initiatives done to encourage people to look beyond the appearance of foods, there continues to be an increase of food wastage. This realization prompted me to recognize the lack of seriousness people were showing towards this issue. Consequently, I ensured that my solution had a powerful and bold art direction to captivate and retain people's attention to what I am advocating for.
Project Objective
Food Rebels aims to break stereotypes and spread awareness regarding the false perceptions of ugly foods by educating Gen Ys on the misconceptions of how they perceive these foods and to give them a first-hand experience in tasting meals made from ugly ingredients.
Target Audience
My chosen target audience is Gen Y, aged 25 to 42 years, as they comprise the majority of grocery shoppers. Grocery shoppers play a crucial role in the prevalance of "ugly foods" as it began when consumers selected produce during their shopping trips.The issue of food waste due to cosmetic standards in supermarkets is multifaceted, and assigning fault isn't straightforward. Both supermarkets and customers play a role in this complex problem. However, consumers often prefer visually appealing produce, which leads to a demand for cosmetically perfect items. This preference influences supermarkets to adhere to strict cosmetic standards.
In conclusion, consumers should be educated about the beauty standards they impose on foods and should understand and appreciate that "ugly foods" are still edible, despite their appearance. This is crucial as the longer this notion persists, the more edible food is wasted.
Problem Statement
How might we create an alternative avenue for unsold but edible food products to prevent them from going to waste while ensuring that Gen Ys are educated on these "ugly foods" and encouraged to buy them?
The Solution
To mitigate the issue of increasing food wastage due to the widespread notion of "ugly foods", I decided to start a movement called Food Rebels or more commonly advertised as a "revolution". This movement takes the form of both a physical and virtual food event.
Physical Food Event
The physical food event features booths exclusively showcasing dishes made from "ugly" ingredients. The food event also includes educational carnival games, talks about "ugly foods", an ugly food grocer, and workshops, all aimed at changing the perception that "ugly foods" equals lower quality and inedibility.
Online Food Event
Similarly, the virtual food event mirrors the physical one but with a twist. Online attendees can earn points by interacting and learning about ugly foods, collecting points to win attractive prizes like vouchers and more. All the highlights from the physical event are available online, including live talks where participants can listen in real-time.
I decided to create a virtual food event along with the physical one as by expanding my reach through virtual channels, I aim to foster global participation and elevate user engagement. Some advantages of my online events include unparalleled accessibility, cost-effectiveness by eliminating physical venue expenses, and the convenience of attending from any location, thereby encouraging a diverse and widespread audience to join the movement for food sustainability and appreciation.
