3D Food Printing – Is this the future of food?

3D Printing is being seen as the next big technological revolution. The ability to customize and create any shape of variable strength and different physical properties just opens the door to innovation like nothing else has ever before. Humanity and society will have to recalibrate such a large part of their civilization, especially because many of our biggest problems can be resolved through the use of 3D printers to replace our current systems. One of the biggest changes might be to how we grow and eat food.

Currently, around 40% of the total land surface of the globe is used for the purpose of growing food. 70% of all water consumed is for agricultural purposes. With the global population continuing to rise, the World Bank estimates that the world needs to produce at least 50% more food to feed 9 billion people – a population number we are estimated to hit by the year 2050; the World Bank also estimates that global warming will cut food yields by 25%. There has never been a greater and more pressing need for humanity to develop a better system for producing food. This is further complicated by several factors – for instance, the meat industry. 1 kg of beef is responsible for the same amount of pollution as emitted by the average European car every 250 km. The carbon footprint of meat eating is absurdly large, especially since cows emit methane, which is markedly more harmful than CO₂.

Meeting Global Food Demands with 3D Printing

Using 3D printing to manufacture food might help greatly – there is the possibility that meat and food could be produced as opposed to grown, saving the world some (and maybe eventually, all) of the burden of growing and sustaining humanity’s food needs. Further, 3D printing enables us to deal with nutrition at a completely different level – we can manufacture food based on our dietary and nutrition requirements, as opposed to being limited by factors such as cost, availability, and season.

Our current food industry must invest time, energy and effort to facilitate this solution more. Companies should learn how to prepare for this coming revolution, and evolve systems and standards that will put them ahead of the competition. 3D food printing isn’t something that will come a few decades from now – it is already here, and NASA already 3D prints the food for space missions. Converting this technology for private and commercial use is surely only a few years away.

Challenges in 3D Food Printing

The biggest challenge is likely to be navigating the tricky transition, while the industry and government seek to engage with the new food manufacturing paradigm. Companies are given a unique opportunity in the here and now – with the technology theoretically understood and practically available – to prepare for projected regulations and quality standards, so that they can take the first mover advantage from 3D food printing. Interested parties, like food quality control officers, chefs, risk management personnel in the food industry, marketing directors of food companies should seek expert advice on understanding and implementing this technology. An upcoming webinar on 3D food printing from AudioSolutionz presented by Natacha Alpert, an expert in technology and its application to current markets, will discuss the challenges to food printing from the perspective of safety, timing, culinary creativity, design, taste and materials. You will also understand the scope and opportunities of customized food production with this new technology.