Artistic applications
Artists and illustrators used the sheets as a tactile surface for drawing, printing and visual experimentation.
Scarta
Scarta is a circular design project that transforms brewer’s spent grain into handmade paper and communication materials.
Overview
Scarta started from a communication competition organised by NaturaSì and evolved through a startup incubation programme focused on sustainable entrepreneurship.
My role covered exploratory research, product development, visual identity, illustration, web design, social media, print and physical applications.
The problem
Large quantities of food and agricultural by-products were being discarded not because they had no value, but because regulations, logistics and disposal costs often made reuse difficult.
How might we transform a local waste stream into a useful and economically valuable material?
Research
We spoke with actors across the system to understand where by-products appeared, how they were handled and whether they could realistically become useful materials.
- Farmers & food producers
- Supermarkets
- Waste-management organisations
- Local artisans
- Breweries
- Educational organisations
Key insight
Brewer’s spent grain stood out as a high-volume by-product with very little economic value.
Breweries often dispose of spent grain at a cost, give it away as animal feed or use it in agricultural contexts without generating meaningful value. Its high cellulose content suggested a new possibility: could brewer’s spent grain become paper?
Ideation and development
From material experiment to real-world applications.
We explored how brewer’s spent grain could move from an experimental material to a finished product, a visual identity and a system of applications.
Brewer’s spent grain
Handmade paper
01
Material prototype
We partnered with a Genoese artisan specialised in traditional handmade paper production. The first experiments proved that spent grain could become a usable paper substrate.
02
From prototype to product
Once the material proved viable, we refined it into Scarta: a finished handmade paper product with defined characteristics and potential uses.
- Handmade production
- Brewer’s spent grain fibres
- Recycled paper content
- Visible natural texture
- Suitable for print and illustration
03
Building the brand from the material
Scarta’s identity emerged after the first prototype. The logo combines the shape of a hop cone with the fold of a sheet of paper, connecting the raw material with the product it became.
Identity system
A visual language built around transformation.
The identity uses simple geometry, natural colour and playful illustration to translate the material’s organic origin across physical and digital touchpoints.
04
Real-world applications
Once the product and its communication system were established, Scarta was tested across four distinct contexts.
Educational applications
A card deck and school activities used the material to discuss food waste and responsible consumption.
Workshops and laboratories
Hands-on sessions turned circular design into a physical and participatory learning experience.
Product and packaging
A brewery’s own spent grain returned to the product as a paper label, making the circular process visible.
Conclusions
Sustainability has to work beyond the concept.
A sustainable idea is not enough. Material feasibility, production cost, logistics and real-world use all shape the final solution.
Design can connect different actors.
Scarta required collaboration between breweries, artisans, organisations, schools and artists. Design became the system connecting all of them.
The strongest story was already inside the material: the paper itself carried the origin and the story of the waste.
