How can we minimize food waste?
EU legislation requires that most packaged foods be labelled with either a "use-by" or "best-before" date. While these indicators serve as important guidelines, the "best-before" date in particular is often misunderstood — contributing to the premature disposal of still-edible food. The discrepancy between regulation and perception becomes a site of waste.
Vorkoster proposes a material-based intervention: a lid embedded with a pH-sensitive film that responds visibly to the spoilage of protein-rich foods. As the food degrades, the film changes color — providing a direct, analogue signal of freshness that operates independently of fixed dates.
This simple object challenges the standardised notion of shelf life. Instead of relying on abstract timestamps, it engages directly with the material reality of food itself. It reframes expiration not as a number, but as a process — observable, responsive, and personal.
In doing so, Vorkoster offers a speculative alternative to the packaging systems we currently depend on. It gestures toward a future in which decay is made visible, not prescribed.
Developed in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research.
EU legislation requires that most packaged foods be labelled with either a "use-by" or "best-before" date. While these indicators serve as important guidelines, the "best-before" date in particular is often misunderstood — contributing to the premature disposal of still-edible food. The discrepancy between regulation and perception becomes a site of waste.
Vorkoster proposes a material-based intervention: a lid embedded with a pH-sensitive film that responds visibly to the spoilage of protein-rich foods. As the food degrades, the film changes color — providing a direct, analogue signal of freshness that operates independently of fixed dates.
This simple object challenges the standardised notion of shelf life. Instead of relying on abstract timestamps, it engages directly with the material reality of food itself. It reframes expiration not as a number, but as a process — observable, responsive, and personal.
In doing so, Vorkoster offers a speculative alternative to the packaging systems we currently depend on. It gestures toward a future in which decay is made visible, not prescribed.
Developed in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research.
To date, the Vorkoster has been recognised by the scientific and design community.
The product has been rewarded with prizes and exhibitions.
Design Indaba
German Design Graduates
Design Research Award
Prototypesforhumanity
Hessischer Staatspreis Universelles Design
Kultur- und Kreativpilot*innen
Secrid Talent Podium