Intelligent concept has been widely used in the design of food packaging. Compared with traditional food packaging, intelligent food packaging has obvious advantages in consumer convenience and food safety guarantee. However, there existed lacks of clear definition, classification and design process in intelligent food packaging, which affected the promotion of the intelligent concept in food packaging. Aimed at this issue, the concept, design principles and design elements of intelligent food packaging were clarified, with the intelligent food packaging design process analyzed and the application of intelligent concept in food packaging design elaborated in detail through specific cases. The research showed that intelligent food packaging had many forms of manifestation, and its design criteria should be based on the characteristics of product demands, with the purpose of increasing consumer experience and enhancing food safety.