The ‘Hooked’ package design is a fish pellet set that acts as a functional, sustainable alternative to traditional fish food packaging by offering a paper-based alternative to commonly sold plastic fish food containers. They takes substantially less time to decompose, are recyclable, and do not release the dangerous chemicals and byproducts that often enter the environment as a result of plastic creation and decomposition.

Plastic waste is one of the largest problems facing the environment and human health today. An abundance of plastic can be found across the world in stores and homes as well as in landfills and evidently in our rivers, lakes and oceans. Plastic takes hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of years to decompose, releasing dangerous toxins over time, and often ending up as tiny fragments of micro-plastic. In addition to threatening human health, the growing presence of plastic in the ocean increasingly kills sea life through ingestion and entanglement. The irony in this is that the majority of the packing made for domesticated fish food products use heavy plastics.

Key characteristics of the final packaging include its typography, visual layout and interactivity. A custom typeface mimicking playful handwriting was created for the project to complement other aesthetic choices made across the package and to appeal to children while retaining legibility. The colour palette and overall visual layout of the package promotes a connection between the package and children, mimicking popular pet store fish stocks and standing out among common fish food packaging. The back of the package offers an interactive aspect in the form of a daily feeding checklist that promotes regular fish feeding, teaching children responsibility and preventing the overfeeding and underfeeding of fish.