Cereal brand Kellogg’s is set to permanently add technology to its boxes to make them more accessible to visually impaired people
Using an app called NaviLens, users can hold their phone in front of the box and it will detect the code from up to three metres away.
The code is made up of high contrasting coloured squares on a black background and users don’t need to know where it is on the box to access it.
Once the app picks up the code, users can choose to have ingredients, allergen and recycling information read aloud to them.
It comes after a successful trial on Coco Pops boxes, in partnership with Co-Op.
The technology is currently used across transport systems in the Spanish cities of Barcelona, Madrid and Murcia to help visually impaired citizens navigate the public transport systems.
The first codes will be places on Special K boxes hitting shelves from January.
It will be added to the rest of the brand’s boxes throughout 2022.
Kellogg’s said it hoped other brands might also work towards making supermarkets more accessible for those with sight loss.
Chris Silcock, head of Kellogg’s UK, said: ‘Over two million people in the UK live with sight loss and are unable to simply read the information on our cereal boxes.
‘As a company focused on equity, diversity and inclusion we believe that everyone should be able to access important and useful information about the food that we sell.
‘That’s why, starting next year, we are adding new technology to all of our cereal boxes.
‘I am proud that Kellogg’s will be the first company in the world to use NaviLens on packaging.
‘We know it’s important that all packaging is accessible for the blind community to enable them to make shopping easier, so we will share our experience with other brands who want to learn more.’
Following the Coco Pops, charity Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) found that 97% of participants agreed that they would like to see more of these accessibility features available on grocery packaging in the future.
Marc Powell, strategic accessibility lead at RNIB, said: ‘This announcement from Kellogg’s is a real game changer within the packaging world.
‘It marks a significant step-change in how big brands can put accessibility at the forefront of design and packaging decisions and be a catalyst for change.
‘Important information on packaging can often be in very small print, making it difficult or impossible for people with sight loss to read.
‘Changes like this can provide blind and partially sighted people with vital information for the very first time, giving us the same freedom, independence and choice as sighted customers.
‘Designing packaging so that it works for everyone makes complete sense and we hope that other brands will follow Kellogg’s lead in making packaging information more accessible.’
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