Presenting, the dreariest food packaging ever created

vegaslounge

Saw this the other night...it goes beyond "bad design", more like, "soul-crushingly depressing". Grocery-brand generics look better– hell, the ultra-generic food items in Repo Man are cheerier. I hope someone is checking in with the art director and making sure he's okay.

~VL

rheddmobile

To be fair the packaging would look not too bad if the food dresser and photographer were better! Surely they could have made that look more appetizing.

vegaslounge

rheddmobile wrote: »

To be fair the packaging would look not too bad if the food dresser and photographer were better! Surely they could have made that look more appetizing.

Serving suggestion: run over with car, season with your own disappointed tears.

~VL

HellYeahItsKriss

One noodle on top... lol... thats not even lasagna.

vegaslounge

Oh my God, I didn't even see until just now that that sad unadorned little slab of road-lasagne, sitting on a plain white plate several sizes too large– making it look tiny and drained of color– IS ACTUALLY THE OFFICIAL SERVING SUGGESTION. Seriously, look in the lower left corner.

Oh, this is just the most profoundly sad microwavable meal I have ever seen, and that includes the single-serving cup of frozen corn Green Giant had out a few years back.

~VL

canadianlbs

i dunno . . . everything else seems to be minimalist-white and a back-cast to mid-century modern right now, so i'm sort of surprised at the hate. this looks like it would blend right in with those horrible melamine chairs and so forth.

i'm very much a function-over-form kind of person though, so if anything i get cranky about packaging that raises expectations too high.

vegaslounge

canadianlbs wrote: »

i dunno . . . everything else seems to be minimalist-white and a back-cast to mid-century modern right now, so i'm sort of surprised at the hate. this looks like it would blend right in with those horrible melamine chairs and so forth.

i'm very much a function-over-form kind of person though, so if anything i get cranky about packaging that raises expectations too high.

Oh, I get that. I actually got a BFA in illustration with a minor in art history (ladies and gentlemen, the most useless double-degree you might ever find) so I completely understand how personal aesthetics play into things. I'm not a huge fan of minimalism, but the typeface and layout is very clean and quite nice (although I would have swapped the "High Protein" and "Vegetable & Ricotta Lasagna" in the hierarchy).

It really just is the photo, combined with the rest of the package design. I feel sorry for that lasagna. It looks so downcast. First off, you never use a big plate, it makes the food look tiny in comparison. There is nothing– no parsley sprigs or even fake steam, to adorn the food. It literally is just plunked down on a bare plate. And the plate/background is white and gray...not exactly the cheeriest combo. It makes the food look cold, particularly when it's sitting in the freezer aisle. There were a couple other meals that looked equally grim and prison-issued, but this one was by far the worst.

Also, the "fork" logo, frankly, looks like a woman with massive hips. Not exactly reassuring for a brand with "skinny" in the title.

Wow, did I just geek out there. But, again, I have a double-degree in art and design and I don't get to bust it out too often, lol.

~VL

julie3461

Their website and recipes are surprisingly appealing.

pogiguy05

At least it represents what is given to you. have you ever ordered something and when you get it your like, what is the abomination you handed me. i would like what was pictured on the menu. One that comes to mind is dining out and ordering a prime rib eggs Benedict. The menu made it look good, but what came was disappointing to say the least. barely could see any sliced prime rib under the sauce.

canadianlbs

vegaslounge wrote: »

Wow, did I just geek out there.

i think the fork looks like marvin the martian, sort of. except curvier.

the lasagna is sad but it's honest, you know? i guess anyway. i can totally see how it might not appeal; it's basically a 'dinner' version of a pop tart. or that's what it looks like to me.

vegaslounge

canadianlbs wrote: »

the lasagna is sad but it's honest, you know? i guess anyway. i can totally see how it might not appeal; it's basically a 'dinner' version of a pop tart. or that's what it looks like to me.

One big problem being...this sad little lasagna was "on sale" for nearly $7.00. When Banquet ($1.00 and proud of it) meals have more enticing packaging than something that would cost 3/4th of my hourly pay, I'd expect something a bit more.

~VL

mph323

vegaslounge wrote: »

canadianlbs wrote: »

the lasagna is sad but it's honest, you know? i guess anyway. i can totally see how it might not appeal; it's basically a 'dinner' version of a pop tart. or that's what it looks like to me.

One big problem being...this sad little lasagna was "on sale" for nearly $7.00. When Banquet ($1.00 and proud of it) meals have more enticing packaging than something that would cost 3/4th of my hourly pay, I'd expect something a bit more.

~VL

$7.00?!?! How much protein is in that thing? Is this some kind of mind experiment?

HellYeahItsKriss

My lasagna looks better

celestestar

Each to their own. Looks yummy to me, and it looks like it has two layers of pasta not one

BruinsGal_91

I have to say that looks absolutely soul-crushing and completely unappetizing. Just one small arugula leaf would have helped make it less blah.

@HellYeahItsKriss's lasagne on the other hand, looks utterly delicious.

JetJaguar

A big problem is the lighting and white balance of the photo is off. Plus, the rest of the packaging looks like something somebody threw together in PowerPoint. It's like someone said "What do I need to hire a photographer and graphic designer for? I've got a camera on my phone and Microsoft Office, I can do this myself!"

Good_Morning_Glory

HellYeahItsKriss wrote: »

My lasagna looks better

*kitten* yeah it does.

RaevnW6

OMG! Truth in advertising.
What a depressingly refreshing change.

It looks exactly like what comes out of the box!
And maybe, well... why not show me a fork for scale.

nickssweetheart

I will go against the grain and admit that I like the design part of the packaging. They definitely could have shot the photo more appealingly though. I wonder if they intentionally made it look like a lasagna-flavored protein bar?

NEW for 2018: don't eat your food, TAKE your food, like a supplement.

kenyonhaff

Maybe it can only taste better than it looks? Instead of getting depressed by a great package with sad food?

mph323

nickssweetheart wrote: »

I will go against the grain and admit that I like the design part of the packaging. They definitely could have shot the photo more appealingly though. I wonder if they intentionally made it look like a lasagna-flavored protein bar?

NEW for 2018: don't eat your food, TAKE your food, like a supplement.

Ha, that's exactly what I was thinking!

Ready2Rock206

For the sad lonely overweight single. Enjoy.

TorStar80

“The lasagna that doesn’t pretend”.

aganey

To me it looks like one of those cereal bars with the white frosting thats supposed to resemble the milk. And what’s with veggies only peeking out from half of the noodle? Does the other half not have veggies? Seems like the lasagna is sad and saying “eat me if you want to, or not.” Doesn’t really appeal to me enough to eat it.