With design top of everyone's mind... came across this trendy packaging for Greenspot, a Namibian organic vegetable producer. Packaging and branding by %fftheshelf. Nice to look at, but wondering if the packaging is biodegradable or indeed necessary.

Would the product have the same appeal if it was displayed in a wicker basket at a local farmers market? Or do we need cool design to tempt us? If I'm not mistaken organic certification of products entails their having to be packaged so that they cannot be contaminated or confused with "regular" non-organic products. So do we need we need packaging after all?

Frequently the packaging criticism is levelled at Woolworths, but when you have organic and non-organic foodstreams and national distribution networks, what are the alternatives to ensure the integrity of the organic items?