Ali-CECO” (Embossed Writing in the Food Industry)

Abstract

For most people, it is difficult to do something as simple as “choosing” a product from a supermarket shelf when it is full of different typefaces. This situation is even more difficult for those people who have a disability or some kind of physical limitation. In search for a solution, the inclusive packaging paradigm has arisen. In this context, fourteen visually-impaired people (with a residual vision of 3-8%) were studied in a research work carried out in Valladolid (Spain) using a co-laboratory methodology. This research’s point of departure emerged as a concrete need: in Europe’s food industry —and in Spain’s, specifically—, there is an absolute lack of devices that enable blind people to buy commodities in a safe and autonomous manner. The results of this study are presented in this paper. The proposal herein is to include Braille in the caps of milk cartons (or bottles of water, oil or juice, or in any container with a lid) in order to differentiate this product from others with a similar format, and to identify the properties of the food it contains. In this case, the prototype is a plastic, round, recycled “tethered cap” with embossed writing to identify the product and a notch to indicate the direction of the writing so that it is easier to read. The following acronyms are also included: LA for lactose, GL for gluten and FS for nuts.