🪄 Created as a part of the Independent Research Project

🎓 MA Service Design, Royal College of Art

👩‍🍳 Saumya Sahni, Revati Naik

⏰  May 2024 - August 2024

Overview

We created Full-Fill with questioning how a sense of (food) well-being can be cultivated when addressing food insecurity.

The inspired sense of community found in communal eating spaces showed a potential to transform food access. This led us to rethink and destigmatise community kitchens, — from places of emergency aid to welcoming spaces where people can choose to enjoy affordable meals together.

Our research showed that community kitchens needed as much support and visibility as their customers did, and through stable monetisation techniques, partnerships and branding for the kitchen themselves, we conceptualised Full-Fill.

🔎 Discovery

Food Networks

Mainstream Food Networks

Our process began by looking into working class individuals’ experiences with mainstream networks of food access. (Restaurants, Cafes, Grocery Stores, markets, etc).

We conducted deep research by reading tons of studies, talking to experts, and conducting structured conversations with our perceived user group.

One of the participants summarised the experience of many, by stating that the food system is upside down — cheaper avenues of food access are unhealthy and processed, whereas eating well and ‘good’ cooked meals is a luxury.

This made us look into affordable Alternative Food Delivery Networks - like supermarkets, community centres, agriculture markets and food banks.

• We saw potential in communal eating models to become a credible source of food access, comparable to mainstream options beyond food aid.

• We initially hypothesized that destigmatising community kitchens would establish them as a viable source of food access.

🎯 Focus: Community Eating

Community Kitchens are spaces that provide hot nutritious food for free or a low cost to individuals, by sourcing surplus food from grocery stores and restaurants.

• They’re charity-run operations
• cooking and hosting is done on a voluntary basis, and the time for lunch is pre-decided.
• we volunteered routinely at 3 community kitchens within the same area and performed contextual enquiries.

volunteering at foodcycle