3D Printing Food For The Future

The start of 3D printing has been eye catching for the better part of the last decade. 3D printing has been used to create objects out of seemingly thin air, and with all the detail of a handcrafted item. This technology has since been applied to the culinary field. This is another extremely exciting prospect for future food innovation as well as advances in nutrition. Let’s take a deeper look on how 3D printing is changing food markets around the world.

The original 3D printers used a process of printing plastic filament in a specific pattern, in layers, to create an object that is uploaded to its database. Researchers have found that we can mimic this same type of structuring using food pastes that are easily modifiable to meet any dietary preference. Some commonly extruded food elements are those with textures similar to room temperature chocolate and tomato paste. This concept of extrusion in the food industry is nothing new. See pasta for example. These pastes are printed into layers and end up creating a structure from images uploaded to the printer. Think of a pastry chef icing a cup cake – they use the piping bag to create layers of frosting all around the cupcake, and are able to add ingredients directly on top of one another.

Below is a great statement I found to share some insight on capabilities of 3d printing:

“Customizable cuisine and personalized nutrition are now within reach. For example, researchers at the U.S. Department of Defense’s Combat Feeding Directorate, which develops military rations for the U.S. Armed Forces, are working on 3D printed nutrient bars tailored to the individual needs of soldiers under different conditions. Meanwhile, researchers at Columbia University have made a slice of cheesecake with an elaborate internal structure that releases flavors in waves. And a company called Redefine Meat is trying to reproduce the structure, texture and flavor of beef steaks by 3D printing plant-based fibers. Within the next 15 years, 3D printers could have a prominent place in the kitchen next to the toaster or microwave, experts say.” - https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/presspacs/2022/acs-presspac-february-9-2022/3d-printers-create-custom-foods.html?utm_medium=email&utm_source=rasa_io)

We are seeing many different innovation styles and needs being filled by 3D printing. One of the most important ways 3D printing is helping the world is by producing nutrient added products extremely efficiently. One can add any nutrient/vitamin to the paste and meet the markets needs/deficiencies. If consumers in one geographical location are missing phosphorus in their diet, or missing calcium etc…we can design products to be distributed to combat these deficiencies.

The insect and insect flour segment is an incredibly fast growing sector as well. Insects are consumed daily around the globe, but has yet to really make in impact in western markets. The stigma of eating bugs is still not a comfortable culinary trend. 3D printing is helping expedite this process by turning it into something consumers are more comfortable with. We do not have to be directly consuming insects to get additional protein, but instead we are adding these insect flours to 3D printable pastes and getting the extra protein as a result. The production of insect protein is far more sustainable than the use of traditional styles of protein (rearing cattle/goats/pigs etc…).

Photo credit: bizzarrefoods.com

Below I’ve listed some companies who are producing 3D printed food and are leaders in their category:

Natural Machines (naturalmachines.com)

-Natural machines is the producer of the Foodini 3D printer. This printer is linked to an app that contains recipes and preset shapes that one can use to elevate their creations. Consumers at home can design textured pastries, pies with different flavors in printed layers and are connected to troubleshooting software that can guide them easily through this process.

BluRhapsody (blurhapsody.com)

-BluRhapsody is looking to reinvent the art of making pasta. They have started to print pasta shapes for purchase for any occasion. As shown on their website right now are different styles for Valentine’s Day. Red heart shaped pastas, pastas in the style of angels, baskets, flower petals etc…while a lot of these products seem very whimsical, there are a lot of technical applications utilized in the production process that can be applied elsewhere. This company is creating a great framework for a new pasta market.

BeeHex (beehex.com)

-BeeHex is a company that focuses on robotics, artificial intelligence and 3D food printing. Personalized nutrition bars can be ordered by consumers and customized how they want. BeeHex can personal flavor and the nutritional value of their bars, per consumer choice. This is an incredibly unique company that was founded by the US Army to provide better nutrition to America’s forces.

Pictured above: BeeHex 3D printing pizzas

Redefine Meat (redefinemeat.com)

-Redefine Meat already has Chef Marco Pierre White’s blessing and endorsement for what is shaping up to be an excellent meat alternative. All of the product made by Redefine are made from plant based ingredients and boasts a very clean label. This company focuses on ground meat, lamb, kabobs and sausage products. This company gets extremely close to generating the texture of meat through 3D printing and AI meat reconstructing technology.

3D printing is a provocative innovation in the culinary field and has more uses than we have discovered yet. Being able to add nutrients and restructure some of our favorite foods builds the opportunity for a more sustainable future, and for impoverished countries to receive much needed aid.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Stephen