Clif Bar – Litter Leash
July 31st, 2007
Here’s some food for thought as we go into the 3rd week of my look into packaging: What if packaging design was just a little more considered?
Could our sidewalks and road-sides be free of bottle caps and cigarette packs? Maybe our gutters wouldn’t be clogged with plastic bags and blister packs. Perhaps our oceans might have one less gigantic garbage patch.
I’m a fan of Clif Bar’s recent effort to keep litter in its place. The Litter Leash is a pretty clever little piece of design (it’s covered by two utility patents).
Its elegant design inspires me. It’s so simple, effective and “obvious,” yet unmatched. Now, it’s by no means perfect, but in essence, the litter leash takes a step to build a mental connection between litter and the environment and makes the user take responsibility for this tiny piece of trash.
Futureproofed might be a good word for it… What inspires you?
Patent 6,702,462
Patent 6,244,467
Popularity: 12% [?]
August 2nd, 2007 at 9:01 pm
I would be interested to know how much more it costs to manufacture this package compared to their old package.
I also wonder if this is something that you would pay more money for? And if so, how much more?
August 6th, 2007 at 8:03 am
This is a wonderful bit of design that I’ve been a fan of for a while now.
Laura’s question got me thinking (“would you pay more?”). My answer is yes. As a cyclist, I eat this stuff while riding – and these things make life easier. While riding you can rip it open, and not have to worry about what to do with the little piece of packaging you just removed. You just let it hang, eat the goop, and stuff the whole package back in your jersey pocket. So a) it does prevent littering and b) it’s actually easier to use in the practical sense. So, for my use, I’d absolutely be willing to pay a bit more for this “feature”.
Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone would design for the confluence of practical improvement and care for the environment!
December 1st, 2008 at 6:38 pm
Other types of blister packs consist of carded packaging where goods such as toys, hardware, and electrical items are contained between a specially made paperboard card and clear pre-formed plastic such as PVC. The consumer can easily examine the product through the transparent plastic. The plastic shell is vacuum-formed around a mold so it can contain the item snugly. The card is brightly colored and designed depending on the item inside, and the PVC is affixed to the card using heat and pressure to activate an adhesive (heat seal coating) on the blister card. The adhesive is strong enough so that the pack may hang on a peg, but weak enough so so that the package can be easily opened. Sometimes with large items the card has a perforated window for access.
A more secure package is known as a clamshell. Typically used for theft-prone items like consumer electronics, it consists of either two pre-formed plastic sheets or one sheet folded over onto itself and fused at the edges. They are usually designed to be difficult to open by hand so as to deter tampering and pilfering. A pair of scissors or a sharp knife is often required to open them. Care must be used to safely open some of these packages, as 6,000 Americans are sent to the emergency room each year by opening them.