That’s a Wrap: The Best and Worst Packaging 2019
The That’s a Wrap: Best and Worst Packaging of 2019 results are in!
Thank you for voting in this year’s ‘That’s a Wrap’ Campaign: The Best and Worst Packaging of 2019!
Worst packaging of 2019
This year we had a huge range or entries from lollies to toiletries. Here are your top five ‘worst’ categories:
5 – Child-proof packaging- specifically the push down and turn lids
4 – Jars – glass jars with the vacuum ‘safety button’ lid topping this list
3 – Milk Bottles – both with twist lids, and the half-moon seals, which won the Worst Packaging in 2017
2 – Clamshell packaging
And the winner for the Worst Packaging of 2019 goes to: water bottle lids with the plastic screw cap with a tamper-evident band.
Best packaging of 2019
This year we had two winners.
The ‘stick pack with perforated/tear away tab’ found on the Gaviscon double action sachet.
These sachets have a perforated line to assist in tearing, allowing minimal force and a clean tear (tearing in the correct direction). The texture of the end seals allows for more grip of the packaging. The contrast of the labelling of the word tear, the dotted line and the arrow allow the consumer to easily see and understand the opening directions
And the ‘injection moulded screw cap with a living hinge’ found on Colgate toothpaste
The living hinge requires minimal force to open and the overhanging tab is large enough to push against to open.
Along with these two winners, we also had the Kellogg’s individual cereal bags as our runner up. These have already been certified as ‘easy-to-open’ and more information can be found here.
What’s Next
Your stories continue to make waves. Each nomination and comment helps push the conversation forward, showing industry leaders that packaging isn’t just a design feature; it’s an access issue. The next phase of the campaign will involve us reaching out to companies whose products were nominated, both best and worst, to share these insights and advocate for meaningful, user-centered changes.
Together, we’ll keep advocating for changes that make packaging safer, easier and more inclusive.
What does the ‘worst packaging’ mean?
- you couldn’t open it at all
- you opened it after a struggle
- caused you pain
- hurt your self-opening it
- had to use a tool, like a knife or scissors, to open it
- had to ask someone else to open it for you
- caused you to damage or spill the contents
- caused a brief moment of hesitation, anxiety or fear about opening it due to previous negative experiences.
What does the ‘best packaging’ mean?
- genuinely easy-to-open, not just slightly better then a really bad alternative.
You shouldn’t have to struggle with any packaging, but until that happens we want to know what packaging consistently makes your life easier. We may also buy samples of nominations to confirm that they are in fact reasonably accessible.
About That’s a Wrap
Our annual campaign to highlight both good and bad packaging designs. Your voices help drive change in the packaging industry and assist our Accessible Design Division to educate the packaging industry and determine if packaging is becoming more user-friendly or increasingly difficult over time.