Changing yuck to yum: Small Giants redesign breaks insect snack taboo with humanized illustrations

19 Mar 2021 --- “Changing yuck to yum” is the design strategy behind insect snack brand Small Giants’ rebranding. UK- and Canada-based design agency Midday Studio “makes the weird wonderful” by humanizing crickets with oversized limbs, awkward antennae and expressive facial features.

Insect snacks are not new to human diets, but slow to reach Western supermarket shelves. Eating crickets, worms and termites are not commonly viewed as appetizing in the US and Europe, despite the vast health and environmental benefits of insect farming.

“Most people at first are put off by the idea of eating insects. You can’t smash a taboo like this quietly,” Claudio Vecchio, creative partner at Midday Studio, tells PackagingInsights.

“Our creative opportunity was to reimagine bugs and create an engaging brand that takes away the fear of eating insects. We aimed to push insect snacking into the mainstream and not just to compete with other insect based brands.”

“You can’t smash a taboo like this quietly so the color palette is modern and bold like the flavors themselves,” says Vecchio.Bringing crickets to life
Small Giants are gourmet cracker ranges baked with cricket flour.

Crickets are a highly environmentally sustainable source of protein, emitting 2 g of greenhouse gas emissions per kg live-weight.  In comparison, cows emit 2,850 g and pigs 1,130 g.

Crickets have up to 70 percent protein. Runners-up are chicken (27 percent), beef (26 percent) and salmon (20 percent).

The new design, with its vibrant color palette, was chosen as “the boldest route,” to emphasize the nutrient and environmental benefits through illustration.

The artistic style and typeface were designed to be “intentionally awkward” and reflect the “oddly endearing” shapes and angles made by cricket legs and antennae.The artistic style and typeface were designed to be “intentionally awkward.” 

“To reference the brand name, the characters are giant-sized and bend to fit into the space provided,” Vecchio explains.

The future of insect food
In the near future, the weakening stigma surrounding edible bugs is predicted to lead to popularizing more than just snacks, but also biscuits, finger foods, pasta and burgers made with the highly nutritious novel food source.

A Barclays report highlights the insect protein market could be worth up to US$8 billion by 2030. In other promising strides, Small Giants has reached UK retailer Sainsbury’s listing in 70th place in the weeks following the rebrand and scored two Great Taste 2020 awards.

Vecchio concludes: “It is all about changing perceptions from fear to wonder, breaking taboos to open up a world of new experiences.”

By Anni Schleicher