This edible wrapping tastes as good as the food it’s protecting

Wired
Joao Medeiros
Updated 9:01 AM EDT, Tue August 13, 2013
We've all done it -- gorged on a whole tub of ice cream. But what if you could eat the tub too? Really guzzle the lot. Well, thanks to the invention of edible packaging, now you can.
What would you like with your wrapper? —
We've all done it -- gorged on a whole tub of ice cream. But what if you could eat the tub too? Really guzzle the lot. Well, thanks to the invention of edible packaging, now you can.
Courtesy Phase One Photography / Wikipearls
The creation of Harvard biomedical engineer David Edwards, Wikipearl is an edible packaging that is supposed to enhance the food your eating. Early options include mango ice cream with a coconut wrapper, oatmeal bites and natural yoghurt with strawberry wrapping.
What's on the menu? —
The creation of Harvard biomedical engineer David Edwards, Wikipearl is an edible packaging that is supposed to enhance the food your eating. Early options include mango ice cream with a coconut wrapper, oatmeal bites and natural yoghurt with strawberry wrapping.
Courtesy Phase One Photography / Wikipearls
Wikipearl draws inspiration from the magic of grape skins and by doing so eliminates plastic from foods and beverages. The technology, called Wikicells, is a soft edible membrane made from calcium ions and natural foodstuff.
How does it work? —
Wikipearl draws inspiration from the magic of grape skins and by doing so eliminates plastic from foods and beverages. The technology, called Wikicells, is a soft edible membrane made from calcium ions and natural foodstuff.
Courtesy Phase One Photography / Wikipearls
Wikicells have also been used to wrap balls of cheese. Whereas each cheese bite would normally be wrapped in foil or plastic, now they can be packaged in complementary flavors such as herb and chilli.
Eco-cheeseballs —
Wikicells have also been used to wrap balls of cheese. Whereas each cheese bite would normally be wrapped in foil or plastic, now they can be packaged in complementary flavors such as herb and chilli.
Courtesy Phase One Photography / Wikipearls
Slightly less appealing perhaps but cool all the same -- once you've finished slurping on your cocktail, why not gobble up your glass?
Edible receptacle —
Slightly less appealing perhaps but cool all the same -- once you've finished slurping on your cocktail, why not gobble up your glass?
Courtesy Wikicells
Edwards and his team recently launched the world's first café for food in edible packaging. Based in Paris, Wikibar offers Wikipearls sushi-style on a circular counter.
The Wikibar —
Edwards and his team recently launched the world's first café for food in edible packaging. Based in Paris, Wikibar offers Wikipearls sushi-style on a circular counter.
Courtesy Raphael CEI / Wikipearls
"Eat this sandwich without chucking the paper" says the wrapper: a direct approach to waste reduction by Brazilian fast-food chain Bob's Burgers, who have started serving their burgers in edible paper.
Even faster food —
"Eat this sandwich without chucking the paper" says the wrapper: a direct approach to waste reduction by Brazilian fast-food chain Bob's Burgers, who have started serving their burgers in edible paper.
Courtesy Bob's Burger
Monosol, the company behind dissolvable detergent wrappers, has expanded into the food market: just drop your sachet of oatmeal, hot chocolate or coffee into hot or cold water and watch the packaging disappear.
Disappearing plastic —
Monosol, the company behind dissolvable detergent wrappers, has expanded into the food market: just drop your sachet of oatmeal, hot chocolate or coffee into hot or cold water and watch the packaging disappear.
Courtesy Monosol / Matt Scearce
Hate trying to squeeze out the last scrap of toothpaste? Well no need any more because they've applied the same idea to toothpaste. Just pop it on your toothbrush, run the tap over it and get brushing.
Soluble toothpaste sachets —
Hate trying to squeeze out the last scrap of toothpaste? Well no need any more because they've applied the same idea to toothpaste. Just pop it on your toothbrush, run the tap over it and get brushing.
Courtesy Matt Scearce / Monosol
Who knew the tooth-brushing business could be so progressive? Canadian designer Simon Laliberté recently won an award for his dissolvable incisor-shaped toothbrush box.
Dissolving toothbrush box —
Who knew the tooth-brushing business could be so progressive? Canadian designer Simon Laliberté recently won an award for his dissolvable incisor-shaped toothbrush box.
Courtesy Simon Laliberté
Even electronics giant Apple has jumped on the bandwagon -- they've begun shipping the earphones for their products in packaging that dissolves in water.
Apple Earpods —
Even electronics giant Apple has jumped on the bandwagon -- they've begun shipping the earphones for their products in packaging that dissolves in water.
Courtesy Mashable / apple
Edible packaging: what would you like with your wrapper?

Story highlights

Biomedical engineer David Edwards has invented fully edible packaging called Wikipearl

Real foodstuff is combined with calcium ions to wipe out the need for plastic wrapping

Wikipearl ice cream and yoghurt were launched in selected Paris stores last June

CNN  — 

He’s invented breathable food, flavor clouds and olfactory telephones. Now David Edwards is bringing edible food-packaging to the table.

Called Wikipearl, the wrapping is held together by calcium ions and can include particles of chocolate, nuts and seeds. The idea came out of a conversation Edwards, professor of biomedical engineering at Harvard, had with a sculptor about the concept of tensegrity.

“It’s a really interesting property and relevant in terms of rethinking our packaging,” he says. “Suddenly packaging becomes part of the culinary experience.” Wikipearl ice cream and yoghurt were launched in selected Paris stores last June.

Read this: The solar-powered watercrafts of the future

Edwards began as a biomedical engineer in universities including MIT and Penn State. He left the latter in 1998 after he came up with the idea for inhalable insulin and was approached by Polaris Venture Partners to start a company, Advanced Inhalation Research, with three friends from MIT. It was sold in 1999 to biopharma company Alkermes.