Together with Saltwater Brewery, a small craft beer brand in Florida, we decided to tackle the issue head on and make a statement for the whole beer industry to follow. We ideated, designed, prototyped and manufactured Edible Six Pack Rings. A six-pack packaging design made with materials that instead of killing animals are edible. By using byproducts of the beer brewing process such as barley and wheat, this packaging goes beyond recycling and strives to achieve zero waste. The Edible Six Pack Rings are the first ever 100% biodegradable, compostable and edible packaging implemented in the beer industry.

We know, this is only the beginning, the material we are in the process of patenting together with a small startup of young engineers in Mexico has the potential to impact the CPG and Food and Beverage Industries. Saving hundreds of thousands of marine lives as a result.

After numerous design rounds, variations in raw material mix and stress tests, we used five 3D printer generated molds to manufacture our first batch of 500 Edible Six Pack Rings. We documented it all.

To make our initial statement, in April, we launched the first batch of these edible six-pack rings at the brewery. The events allowed us to engage personally with consumers and give them yet another reason to choose our eco-friendly option. Consumers were able to experience first hand what our new design looked and feels like.

Once we had our story, we initiated with a post from Saltwater President on his Facebook for his network full of craft brewers to notice and spread the word ( he had 500 shares in the first hour). We then followed with an email to 100 journalists, bloggers and influencers we had identified who had covered similar stories in the past year.

Through the launch of the first batch of Edible Six Pack Rings we increased:

The perception in consumers minds that when you buy a Saltwater Beer you support Ocean Conservancy Initiatives.

Willingness from consumers to pay a premium price for Saltwater Beer.

Most important we fulfilled our vision to help a small brewery to substantially and truthfully guide the Beer and other packaging intensive industries to a more environmentally & sustainable business practice that directly has a positive influence in our planet and associated wildlife.

Edible Six Pack Rings are a true testament that for brands to be successful today, it is no longer about being the best IN the world. But rather, being the best FOR the world by being courageous enough to take a real stance.