Barilla Educates Pasta Lovers on Positive Kitchen Behaviours and Embrace 'Passive Cooking'

Barilla, the world leading pasta manufacturer, launches its new 'Passive Cooking' campaign signed by Publicis Italy/LePub - its global strategic and creative partner since 2021 - in collaboration with TOILETPAPER, the image-only magazine founded by artist Maurizio Cattelan and photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari. The global brand campaign went live on October 5th, marking a continuum of the emotional and communicative path summarised in the iconic payoff: 'Barilla. A Sign of Love'. 

The campaign aims to inspire consumers around the world to take part in having a beneficial impact on the planet through simple actions. The project invites people to embrace positive behaviours by changing their kitchen habits, while educating pasta lovers on a new way of enjoying pasta as a 'Sign of love for the planet': a global message that boldly combines Italian tradition and technology in pursuit of sustainability.

“Partnering with Barilla for this new campaign was an incredible opportunity to embrace a method that has been around for centuries - and is a real sign of love for the planet. We have created an open-source tech prototype that can help everyone to reduce their environmental impact along with a WhatsApp BOT. This demonstrates how technology can be a meaningful tool that enhances everyday habits and help make a difference. With their unconventional creativity, TOILETPAPER has been the perfect partner to combine this project's KPIs. Their insouciant aesthetic gives this campaign the playful yet thoughtful angle that fits Barilla’s approach to this project" Bruno Bertelli, global CEO of Le Pub, global CCO of Publicis Worldwide and CCO of Publicis Groupe Italy. 

The idea revolves around an ancient cooking technique renown as ‘Passive Cooking’, an alternative and more sustainable way of cooking pasta that could transform the preparation process by encouraging consumers to adopt practices that are both energy-saving and efficient. The process is as follows: instead of cooking pasta in boiling water for 10 mins, you turn off the heat after two minutes of boiling and let pasta sit in hot water, covering the pot with a lid and following the suggested passive cooking time. Household’s that embrace this approach can have a positive impact on the environment while saving energy and cutting down their carbon footprint through simple gestures at home. One portion of pasta may not seem like much but with 438 million ones served every day there could be a slight change with significant environmental impact on a global basis.

For this purpose, Barilla creates an open-source device to help pasta lovers save energy by reducing up to 80% of CO2 emissions while cooking. The Passive Cooker is a tech prototype invented by Le Garage, Publicis Italy/LePub tech ideation studio, implemented with a software that can be reinterpreted, honed, or advanced by everyone who wants to take on the challenge. The tool placed on top of a pot of boiling water and connected to the smartphone through its own App, can accurately measure the optimal cooking time by sending an alert when pasta is ready to serve. In addition, Barilla gives the possibility to openly use a WhatsApp Bot service with step-by-step contents available to anyone who wants to embrace the Passive Cooking method to solve questions and share their experiences. 

The campaign visual identity has been defined in collaboration with TOILETPAPER, the creative art collective led by artist Maurizio Cattelan and photographer Pierpaolo Ferrari. The duo has made it possible to give a disruptive and unconventional content treatment, transforming informative assets into small clips marked by a great aesthetic impact and provocative surreal narratives. The idea of creating a new relationship between different languages combining advertising, art, and fashion fully goes in the direction expressed by Barilla to enhance a new angle on inventiveness and 'Italian genius'.

"The essence of TOILETPAPER is to have no limits and to be able to meet even apparently very distant worlds", says Maurizio Cattelan. “When the magazine was born ten years ago, we never imagined that those images, often disturbing, unsettling, could escape from the pages giving rise to unexpected collaborations just like this one” – adds Pierpaolo Ferrari.

The campaign will be developed around a fully integrated communication ecosystem involving different touchpoints as social channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube) and influencers partnerships.