Food & Beverage Packaging Design Ideas

Food and drink packaging has come a long way from the standard boxes, plastic bottles, and cans. Today, brands are turning every wrapper, box, and container into a mini billboard of creativity. From quirky shapes to clever prints, packaging has gone beyond protecting snacks and keeping meals fresh — these days, it’s about standing out and making people smile.

In this article, we’re serving up 20 fun and creative packaging ideas for food and beverages that mix function, flair, and brand personality, offering some inspiring ideas for your next delicious design project.

10 Food Packaging Ideas

1. Campbell’s Soup Cans [1]

Starting with a classic, the simple soup can design became iconic due to Andy Warhol’s artworks in the 1960s. Even when Campbell’s introduced new designs for their cans in 2021, the essence of what made them popular remained. It also made collecting the old cans a hobby for some fans.

2. Hippeas Chickpea Puffs

While Campbell’s has been an iconic design, snack brand Hippeas also stands out with its fun packaging. Incorporating their puff design and chickpea-shaped logo, they created a unique smiling face that can convince snack lovers to try their different flavors.

3. Hexagon Spaghetti Boxes (concept)[2]

This packaging concept was cooked up by Neal Fletcher, using a hexagon-shaped design that lets you cook perfectly portioned pasta. With it, you no longer need to open an entire packaging if you are only preparing a dish for one or two people.

4. Malabar Tea Collection [2]

Packaging with clear windows isn’t a new concept, but there are ways to design over it so it still looks great. The Malabar teas add intricate flower art that enhances the look of the packets, while also giving drinkers an idea on what is added to their tea.

5. Trident Gum Boxes Resembling Mouths [3]

The chewing gum brand Trident also utilizes packaging windows to showcase its sugar-free treats. But what better way to promote healthy dental practices than by designing the windows to resemble mouths, with the gum representing the teeth? Fans may take a liking to this witty packaging design.

6. Lay’s Smile Campaign [4]

Speaking of smiles, the latest iteration of Lay’s smile campaign combines modern technology with its brand storytelling. Launched in 2020, this campaign featured QR codes that revealed the people behind the smiles displayed on their packaging. A fun and inspiring way to bring positivity during the pandemic.

7. Anti-Theft Lunch Bags [2]

A clever yet now defunct design group called Think of The created sandwich packaging that used reverse psychology to prevent theft. Adding “mold” spots to the clear and kraft packaging is a funny way to deter people from stealing sandwiches and packed lunches. Though the group no longer exists, their quirky “anti-theft lunch bags” are still available today through Amazon.

8. Bloom Chips (concept) [5]

This innovative packaging concept offers a solution to traditional tube-shaped cans for chips. Simply remove the label and the lid and see the container “bloom” into a bowl. This creative design is excellent for sharing snacks with friends and family.

9. Little Melty’s Solid Food

Little Melty’s Solid Food labels bring a playful twist to baby food with its bright, colorful labels. The fun visuals will delight parents while helping young kids develop their sight and color recognition skills early on.

10. Country Chocolates (concept) [6]

Designer Muhammed Sajid created various chocolate wrappers that showcase different countries through their unique dance cultures and themes. These colorful box designs are meant to highlight some of the top chocolate makers by country and showcase their traditions.

10 Beverage Packaging Design Ideas

1. Share a Coke Campaign

Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign is possibly one of the best marketing campaigns, turning simple bottles and cans of soda into viral treasures. By simply adding people’s names to their labels, the brand sparked a global craze, encouraging everyone to gift friends a can of Coke with their name on it.

2. Milgrad Dairy Milk Cartons [2]

The Milgrad Dairy milk cartons’ designs can create a fun artwork that turns people’s heads. Place the milk packaging side by side, and the cartons form a charming cat drawing, adding a playful appeal that will pique people’s curiosity.

3. 19 Crimes Wine Bottle Themes [4]

Thematic packaging can also be informative, especially if your brand is consistent with its concept. The Australian wine group 19 Crimes designs its labels with actual criminal mugshot images, as well as a scannable code that lets you view the felons’ history.

4. Finca de la Rica Wine Labels [2]

The Finca de la Rica wine labels add a bit of fun to the general packaging design. You can try solving puzzles on their writable labels and enjoy the mazes, crosswords, and word searches like most adults did with their newspapers.

5. Stillhouse Whiskey [7]

Stillhouse Whiskey presents a surreal take on their liquor packaging, using cans shaped like oil containers to highlight their products. While the design does its job in attracting attention, its bold texts and details highlights key ingredients highlight and the company’s history, enticing customers to go for their brand.

6. Welldays Kombucha [8]

This brand uses subtle and minimalist designs to promote their drinks, and the unique colors for their different-flavored cans do most of the talking. A good, simple packaging artwork for the modern kombucha drinker.

7. Lost Boy Cider [9]

Lost Boy Cider is one of the more popular drinks due to its packaging design. Though they usually package their sugar-free drinks in colorful cans, the brand often stands out more during their seasonal offers. Special drinks are released on holidays and special occasions, with thematic designs that match their exclusive flavors.

8. Niche Tea [10]

Herbal tea is often packaged in calming and soothing designs, but can you imagine receiving a set inside paper tubes? The Niche tea sets try to reflect their various flavors with abstract designs adorning their perfectly cylindrical containers.

9. BFrank Wine Bottles (concept) [2]

Talia Cohen, the concept artist behind these wine bottles, probably think that liquor is best served among companions. Still, having to write down the reason you are drinking with a buddy is a funny, yet equally gut punching.

10. Origami Beer Bottles (concept) [2]

Imagine peeling parts of your beer label and turning them into art! Origami Beer bottle’s concept takes creativity to the next level with peel-and-fold labels that make the bottle one of a kind. Add a playful, personal masterpiece that makes the beverage perfect for gifting.

Great packaging doesn’t just protect its contents, it enhances the overall experience. It also sparks curiosity, builds trust, and tells your brand’s story at a glance. When it comes to food and drink packaging, creativity combined with practicality is the secret recipe to win people’s hearts and appetites. These 20 design ideas showcase fun and clever packaging that can turn heads and make any brand iconic.

When brainstorming your first concept or reimagining your current look, let these examples inspire your custom food packaging idea. Afterwards, check out Packlane so you can turn your concepts and designs into competitive packaging that will promote your food products.