Page 18 - Food&Drink magazine November-December 2022

WOMEN IN PACKAGING
BELOW: Keynote speaker Sonia Friedrich discussed the importance of understanding how the human brain works for brands.
BOTTOM: The panel showcased women in the industry who are walking the talk when it comes to sustainability.
Women walking the talk
In a room filled with leaders of Australia’s packaging industry, this year’s Women in Packaging event was a showcase of the women driving the industry forward and disrupting the status quo.
WHEN PKN Packaging News managing editor Lindy Hughson took to the stage to welcome delegates to Women in Packaging 2022, she discussed the importance of nurturing a supportive and inclusive community for women in packaging, and the thrill of seeing the event continue to grow with strong industry support every year.
SLOW DOWN, REFLECT, AND LEARN
This year’s keynote speaker, behavioural science strategist Sonia Friedrich, provided invaluable insights into how our brains work, explaining the unconscious responses we have as consumers.
“Short cuts in our brain led to cognitive errors and if we repeat them over and over again they become habits and beliefs about ourselves. Behavioural science proves that if there is a behaviour we want to change, we can change,” Friedrich said.
She led the room through the necessary steps to understand how the human brain works, the implications for brands and packaging design, and how that knowledge can change consumer behaviour.
One of the major barriers to changing behaviour is our
inability to see ourselves in the long term. She challenged the room to think deeply about finding ways to break that down and incentivise people’s future actions.
“Neuroscience has proven that my brain cannot see myself in five years.
“This is really important because a lot of us are trying to change behaviour for the long term. It means that not one person you are speaking to understands who they are in the future,” she said
Looking at the “reduce, reuse, recycle” campaign, Friedrich pointed out that while the human brain loves things in threes and alliteration, there
is nothing in the slogan to compel consumers to reduce, reuse, or recycle.
“It doesn’t cover any emotional savings. There need to be incentives that make a person feel good because they are doing a good thing,” Friedrich explained.
Throughout her presentation, Friedrich returned to her central point, a call to action to slow down and reflect on your own reactions, behaviour, and choices. The understanding we gain from doing so, better informs decisions on branding, packaging, and changing consumers’ behaviour.
18 | Food&Drink business | November-December 2022 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au