Packaging for the line is as elaborate as the products themselves. "We wanted to have our own look of course," says Robin Osterhues, director of marketing at Frieda's. "Lost Crops appeals to a certain customer. It's an intellectual line of food to help educate people about the origins of the foods they are eating." The dried products come from a variety of suppliers, in gusseted bags made of clear films whose compositions vary from product to product. Typically, a bag is stapled into a paperboard card with die-cut holes for pegging. For fresh products such as the aloe vera, there is no bag; the paperboard card is folded and stapled to form a pouch. Graphic concepts were initiated by Frieda's, but the company turned to Raess Design (Los Angeles, CA) to help out. The panels are color-coded to distinguish beans from corn or fresh products. The cards are made of a 14-pt recycled board coated on one side. It's offset printed in four colors with a gold foil stamping by Larry Brown Lithographers (Glendale, CA). Introduced last Fall, Lost Crops of the Americas is available nationwide, as well as through mail order. Retail prices range from about $2.99 to $3.99.
