How our team brought the farm-to-bag story to life.
When you’ve been the world’s favorite potato chip for nearly a century, there’s immense pride in your heritage and immense responsibility in evolving it. Watching Lay’s largest redesign come to life has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career.
This wasn’t just a packaging refresh. We discovered something surprising: 42% of Lay’s consumers didn’t realize our chips are made with real, farm-grown potatoes. Despite being the category leader, we’d somehow lost the story of where every chip begins. That insight became our North Star.
The authentic narrative has always been there. Lay’s works with over 100 family-owned farms across North America. During harvest season, potatoes go from farm to packaged chips in as little as 48 hours.
We spend up to nine years developing potato varieties that deliver that perfect golden color and satisfying crunch. Out of more than 4,000 registered potato varieties worldwide, we use only 10.
Our PepsiCo Design & Innovation team brought this story to life beautifully. The sun logo now radiates with “Lay’s Rays”—a visual nod to the sunlight that helps potatoes grow. The color palette draws directly from our ingredients: pickle green, hickory brown, savory red. Enhanced photography showcases the golden texture and seasoning of every chip variety. Carl Gerhards, our Senior Director of Design for Global Lay’s, calls it “a love letter to our origins.”
What makes me proudest is backing the visual transformation with real product improvements. By the end of 2025, all core Lay’s products in the U.S. will be made without artificial flavors or colors from artificial sources. Lay’s Baked now uses olive oil with 50% less fat. Our new Lay’s Kettle Cooked Reduced Fat uses avocado oil with 40% less fat.
The design system needed to work globally while celebrating local flavors. A bag in Mexico can highlight regional favorites while clearly being part of the same Lay’s family as a bag in Japan or Germany. That balance required incredible collaboration across our international teams.
The Super Bowl ad earlier this year—”Little Farmer”—gave people a glimpse of the real family farms behind every bag. Now the redesign brings that story to every touchpoint. After nearly 100 years as America’s favorite potato chip, Lay’s isn’t resting on legacy. We’re building the foundation for the next century.
From potato to chip, this transformation represents what I love about working on brands that matter: taking something people already love and making it even better. Our team did that, and I couldn’t be prouder.
