Hidden Harvest
UX Design • Service Design • Design Research
Project Overview
Duration
6 weeks
Role
UX & Service Designer
Tools
Figma, Miro, Adobe Suite
Hidden Harvest is a digital platform designed to help people reduce household food waste by using rarely eaten food parts. The project combines sustainable cooking, cultural knowledge, and community learning.
Problem Space
Food waste is a global issue, with many edible parts thrown away due to lack of knowledge. Rising grocery prices add pressure, and traditional food knowledge is disappearing.
Solution
These are the main features that Hidden Harvest has:
Zero-waste recipes
Community Threads
Cultural cooking insights
Educational content
Research Methodologies & Insights
1
Foundational Research
Global food waste data, pricing trends, competitive analysis.
Insight: Many solutions exist, but none focus on scrap-based cultural recipes.
2
User Research
Interviews with beginner cooks + experienced cooks.
Insight: Beginners want guidance; experienced cooks want to share knowledge.
3
Synthesis
Affinity mapping + ecosystem mapping.
Insight: Most scraps are wasted because users don’t know how to use them.
Target Users
User Group 1: Beginner Cooks
- New to cooking, often on a budget.
- Looking for easy, affordable recipes to save money.
- Interested in learning how to reduce food waste.
User Group 2: Experienced Cooks
- Skilled in creating zero-waste meals.
- Passionate about sustainability and sharing their knowledge.
- Seeking a platform to connect with others and share creative recipes.
Project Goal
Prototype Showcase
Sign up Page
The sign-up page lets users create an account quickly using their email, Google account, or connected social media profiles.
Home Page
The home page begins with a warm, welcoming message, followed by beginner-friendly recipes published by Hidden Harvest. Below that, users can browse popular dishes and connect their social media accounts to explore trending recipes.
Recipes Page
The Recipes page is designed for easy exploration. A search bar at the top allows users to quickly find dishes or ingredients, and filter options help refine results by categories such as trending, vegan, warm, cold, and cultural. Below the filters, a curated selection of featured recipes highlights creative ways to use rarely eaten food parts. Each recipe card includes an ingredient checklist that users can check off as they cook. At the bottom of the page, the Threads section allows users to share their thoughts, tips, and experiences with each recipe.
Educational Page
The Educational page provides users with simple and engaging information about food waste, sustainability, and cultural cooking practices. It features easy-to-read infographics, short articles, and helpful tips that explain how using every part of an ingredient can benefit both the environment and household budgets. The content is organized in a friendly and accessible way, making it easy for users to learn at their own pace. This page helps users understand the bigger impact behind zero-waste cooking and encourages them to make more informed choices in their daily lives.
Account Page
The Account page gives users a personalized space to manage their favorite recipes.
Click to interact with the Prototype!
Reflection
This project taught me the power of small, thoughtful design decisions. By focusing on service design, I was able to create a platform that connects research insights, user needs, and cultural perspectives into one cohesive experience.
Working on Hidden Harvest deepened my understanding of how service design can address real-world challenges like food waste and rising grocery costs while fostering cross-cultural connection. At its core, this project is about transforming what many see as kitchen scraps into valuable resources, turning potential waste into a hidden harvest that brings creativity, savings, and sustainability into the home.
Moving forward, I would love to expand Hidden Harvest by incorporating:
• More diverse cultural recipes, so users can discover and learn from traditions worldwide while reducing food waste.
• Advanced community features, like recipe challenges or reward systems, to make sustainable cooking engaging and fun.
• Partnerships with sustainability organizations, which would provide credibility and help bring real-world impact beyond the digital platform.
• More diverse cultural recipes, so users can discover and learn from traditions worldwide while reducing food waste.
• Advanced community features, like recipe challenges or reward systems, to make sustainable cooking engaging and fun.
• Partnerships with sustainability organizations, which would provide credibility and help bring real-world impact beyond the digital platform.
This project was a reminder that design is not just about visual appeal but about creating meaningful services that inspire action and change. My hope is that Hidden Harvest will continue to grow and encourage people to rethink their relationship with food, turning everyday kitchen scraps into something truly valuable.