The sushi carton marks a milestone for Famous Brands’ ongoing sustainability mission and sets a new benchmark for technical innovation in quick-service packaging.
For Bill Davies, procurement executive at Famous Brands, the brief was clear. ‘We sell fish. We encourage consumers to choose sustainably. There is no world in which that product can arrive in plastic,’ he says. ‘The old fish clam was a temporary solution. We needed something that looked premium, travelled well and aligned with our values.’
The solution is a three-part, plastic-free construction: a folded kraft tray forming a sturdy base, a customised insert that keeps the sushi, ginger, soy and wasabi in place and an outer sleeve that slides over the tray to create a structured pack.
Shave & Gibson innovation manager Michael Downes describes it as a ‘shell-and-slide pack with presence.’ ‘When you pull the tray from the sleeve, it feels deliberate, almost premium,’ he explains. ‘But behind that simplicity is an enormous amount of technical detail.’
The kraft board presented challenges. Its porosity absorbs ink and coatings quickly, making it difficult to print bright brand colours. ‘Fishaways’ green is vibrant,’ Michael says. ‘So we built a controlled white underlay beneath the green to make it pop. Too much white and you lose the natural kraft look. Too little and the colour dies into the fibres.’
The coatings required equal care. Humbelani Makhado, who leads Famous Brands’ Project Pure sustainability programme, explains: ‘No poly lining. No hidden plastic. Only water-based coatings that are food-safe, fridge-ready and fully recyclable. The product sits in that box for up to an hour during delivery, so it must hold structure without compromising safety or flavour.’
She adds: ‘This pack shows what happens when sustainability is the brief, not an afterthought.’
‘It takes hundreds of emails, prototypes, tests and reprints to perfect something this deceptively simple,’ Michael notes. ‘But Famous Brands didn’t compromise. They backed the kraft route even though it’s more expensive. That conviction is rare.’
Dean McKain, who wrote the winning motivation on the awards submission, explains: ‘Judges see dozens of good packs. Attention is currency,’ he says. ‘The product was strong. My job was to make them look twice.’
Bill adds: ‘I told the team months ago I want gold, and it’s non-negotiable. And when we got it, it felt like a validation of everything: our sustainability goals, our brand ethos and the partnership behind this pack.’
For Michael, the win is both recognition and a reminder. ‘QSR packaging doesn’t get reinvented often,’ he says. ‘Burger boxes stay burger boxes. Pizza boxes stay pizza boxes. But this proves you can push boundaries. You can innovate. You can make something better – for the brand, for consumers and for the planet.’
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