With social media becoming part of everyday life for many people, the desire to live an ‘Insta-worthy’ life has never been stronger. While some take pride in their outfit or restaurant selection, others use social media to show off a lesser seen aspect of their life: the pantry.
A quick search online reveals countless images of immaculately curated kitchen pantries. The focus for many is not what’s inside, but how it’s arranged: presentable, practical organisation is key.
Megan Dryden is a professional organiser and founder of The Organized Life. She says pantry organisation has taken off as people have begun to see the value in investing in a solution.
“For years there was a gap in the market, but now we have some amazing and reliable brands, like OXO and Little Label Co, that are creating quality storage products that have really changed the way we cook, organise and clean in our kitchens,” she says.
The benefits of having a neat and tidy pantry go beyond racking up ‘likes’. Ms Dryden says pantry organisation can save time and money, create a calm environment, and inspire.
“By implementing the correct system, you save time when writing down your grocery list because you know exactly where everything is, and you can see clearly as to what you need to reorder,” she says. “You also save time when cooking that dish at dinner because you’re not spending time looking for the chicken stock or herbs and spices.
“You save money because everything is grouped into categories, so you’re not over-buying and letting items [reach their expiry dates] up the back of your pantry.”
A popular organisational technique involves decanting products into storage containers. In addition to creating more space and making things easy to find, Ms Dryden says this method allows food to last longer because pantry staples have been decanted into airtight containers.
“Investing in good quality containers will save you from bugs, or your food going off,” she says.
For food manufacturers looking to join the organised pantry trend, there are some packaging considerations that could help.
“They could look into different ways of designing their packages and potentially create stackable containers that the food products come in – instead of plastic bags – that allow the customer to stack them neatly in their pantry,” says Ms Dryden.
Read more about pantry trends in the March issue of Retail World.