01 Oct 2014 An ingenious tactile bio-reactive food label

Food date marking—best before’s and sell-by dates—are currently a topic of major controversy in light of statistics which have uncovered the enormous amount of global food waste. Americans for instance, are reported to throw nearly half their food in the garbage. Most people take these dates as gospel—one day past it, and it’s time to chuck that item in the trash. Here’s a new and ingenious solution to this problem….

DESPITE what those sell-by stamps say, food is often edible for much longer. That’s where a new patent-pending bio-reactive food label from Solveiga Pakstatite, a student at Brunel University in the UK, could help.

Her innovative Bump Mark label is filled with a solid, set form of gelatine. When the label is smooth, the food is fresh. When it start to feel bumpy, that’s a sure sign that eating what’s in the package could make you sick.

Pakstatite used gelatine because it’s a protein and will decay at the same rate as the protein-based foods, such as milk and meat, inside the package. Once the gelatine is liquefied and the bumps underneath the label can be felt, the consumer knows that the item is ready to be trashed.

The Bump Mark project won the UK round of this year’s James Dyson Award, which “celebrates, encourages, and inspires the next generation of design engineers”.

Pakstatite received about $3,200 to further prepare the product for the international stage of the competition. The project has reportedly drawn big interest from potential investors. Is this is one food-saving prototype that could be coming to a grocery store soon?

See more about the Bump Mark label here

The James Dyson Awards will be announced mid-October: Click here for some amazing technology concepts

Source: www.takepart.com