By the year 2050, the world’s population is projected to swell to 9 billion. 80% of us will be urban-dwellers. Demand from developing countries for a wider range of foods is on the rise. Experts estimate that we will need new farmland larger than the size of Brazil to produce enough to meet the demands of growing populations.
Food security therefore represents one of the single biggest challenges of our future, with environmental, economic, political, and lifestyle implications.
How will we fix our broken and unsustainable systems of industrial food production to serve the needs of an ever-growing planet? In what ways will we rethink food via new practices and new technologies? This latest report from the Institute for Customer Experience considers how we are re-imagining our food practices in order to project anew our collective, global future.
"The Future of Food," a trends report by Hong Kong based communications firm CatchOn, has identified macro movements, hot spots, personalities, ingredients, design trends and the buzzwords shaping the food scene today.
How is our food evolving? From production to distribution, many innovations will help us feed the planet better in the future, but also become our healthiest and highest performing selves, while safeguarding our virtue.
The future of food: business opportunities in alternative proteinsDavid Welch
A presentation given to the Coller School of Management
Coller Ignite program to provide an overview of alternative protein technologies, highlighting key white space business opportunities
For plant-based meat alternatives a glance inside the consumer mindset shows a growing tendency to go “green” as the desire for healthier lifestyles drives purchases of plant-based foods and beverages.
"The Future of Food," a trends report by Hong Kong based communications firm CatchOn, has identified macro movements, hot spots, personalities, ingredients, design trends and the buzzwords shaping the food scene today.
How is our food evolving? From production to distribution, many innovations will help us feed the planet better in the future, but also become our healthiest and highest performing selves, while safeguarding our virtue.
The future of food: business opportunities in alternative proteinsDavid Welch
A presentation given to the Coller School of Management
Coller Ignite program to provide an overview of alternative protein technologies, highlighting key white space business opportunities
For plant-based meat alternatives a glance inside the consumer mindset shows a growing tendency to go “green” as the desire for healthier lifestyles drives purchases of plant-based foods and beverages.
Credit: www.foodinsight.org
Functional food Energy Diet (http://www.beautysane.com/UK/products.html) meet high standard ISO 9001.
* Meal substitutes for you to cook
* Around 20 flavors for varied gourmet meals
* Enriched with 23 vitamins and minerals
* Haute Digestibilité (HD), an exclusive and patented system of highly digestible products
* Each meal costs less than £3
* Made in France
* Guaranteed: no preservatives, artificial colouring, aspartame or glutamate
To order, Whatsapp +971-55-9483654
We track the trend of how social media has transformed food culture drastically over recent times and give you insights into new modes of food culture acquisition, crowdsourcing displacing mom-sourcing, digital experiences of food, different types of users and opportunities for brands.
The presentation features data and insights from Clicks & Cravings, a syndicated study between The Hartman Group and MSLGROUP
A lecture in Quantitative Sustainability
It is often claimed that agricultural productivity needs to be increased in order to feed a growing world population. Food security depends on several factors besides the productivity, including waste/efficiency, energy crops, meat consumption, and global justice and equity. This lecture explores the issue of food security in its many dimensions and teaches how to use a high-level systems approach in sustainability science.
In the last hundred years, the steadily increase in world population has contributed in the growth of global food
production. Food is one of the most consumed goods worldwide, thus waste produced from it is of large quantities.
This significant increase of food waste generation has become a global issue.
Nutrition-sensitive food systems: from concepts to practice: Resources for de...Francois Stepman
15 May 2017. Brussels. Infopoint Lunchtime Conference: presentation by Cristina Amaral, Director, FAO liaison office with the European Union and Belgium
Charlotte Dufour, FAO Nutrition policy and programme officer
Domitille Kauffmann, FAO Nutrition and resilience and capacity development advisor
Is our current materialistic lifestyle sustainable for our planet? How long can we continue to do things that make us feel good, but that are harmful and not sustainable for our environment? We need to start seeing our interests and nature’s interest as one and the same.
At, HFI’s Institute of Customer Experience (ICE) we believe that there is hope to turn things around from leading a materialistic lifestyle that is indifferent to the planet to leading a sustainable lifestyle; and we have that hope in people. So we went out searching for people from around the world who do live a sustainable lifestyle, and it shows in their work and in their personal lives each day. They are ordinary people, but with a refreshing new mindset, which makes them extraordinary. They are cleaning up our planet, making it a better place to live in, and empathizing with nature all along the way. They mobilize others into action and have drawn many to their work.
We at ICE believe that these people are the “Trendsetters for Sustainable Lifestyles”. Through the eight photobooks that follow we want to showcase their work to the world for the simple and elegant ways in which they have made a difference to the planet as individuals. They are doing their bit and as a result have positively affected communities and the environment around them. We hope they inspire our readers the way that they have inspired us. If we can learn from sustainability being their state of mind and from their work, we can make changes in our lives and fields of work to start living in a manner that will keep Earth a beautiful and habitable place for us for a very long time to come.
Love is a very complex emotion to decode. Or is it?
Machines and their relationship with humans have been explored in great detail. However the impact of machines on the future of love and the connection between technology and emotions seem more pertinent now than before.
Credit: www.foodinsight.org
Functional food Energy Diet (http://www.beautysane.com/UK/products.html) meet high standard ISO 9001.
* Meal substitutes for you to cook
* Around 20 flavors for varied gourmet meals
* Enriched with 23 vitamins and minerals
* Haute Digestibilité (HD), an exclusive and patented system of highly digestible products
* Each meal costs less than £3
* Made in France
* Guaranteed: no preservatives, artificial colouring, aspartame or glutamate
To order, Whatsapp +971-55-9483654
We track the trend of how social media has transformed food culture drastically over recent times and give you insights into new modes of food culture acquisition, crowdsourcing displacing mom-sourcing, digital experiences of food, different types of users and opportunities for brands.
The presentation features data and insights from Clicks & Cravings, a syndicated study between The Hartman Group and MSLGROUP
A lecture in Quantitative Sustainability
It is often claimed that agricultural productivity needs to be increased in order to feed a growing world population. Food security depends on several factors besides the productivity, including waste/efficiency, energy crops, meat consumption, and global justice and equity. This lecture explores the issue of food security in its many dimensions and teaches how to use a high-level systems approach in sustainability science.
In the last hundred years, the steadily increase in world population has contributed in the growth of global food
production. Food is one of the most consumed goods worldwide, thus waste produced from it is of large quantities.
This significant increase of food waste generation has become a global issue.
Nutrition-sensitive food systems: from concepts to practice: Resources for de...Francois Stepman
15 May 2017. Brussels. Infopoint Lunchtime Conference: presentation by Cristina Amaral, Director, FAO liaison office with the European Union and Belgium
Charlotte Dufour, FAO Nutrition policy and programme officer
Domitille Kauffmann, FAO Nutrition and resilience and capacity development advisor
Is our current materialistic lifestyle sustainable for our planet? How long can we continue to do things that make us feel good, but that are harmful and not sustainable for our environment? We need to start seeing our interests and nature’s interest as one and the same.
At, HFI’s Institute of Customer Experience (ICE) we believe that there is hope to turn things around from leading a materialistic lifestyle that is indifferent to the planet to leading a sustainable lifestyle; and we have that hope in people. So we went out searching for people from around the world who do live a sustainable lifestyle, and it shows in their work and in their personal lives each day. They are ordinary people, but with a refreshing new mindset, which makes them extraordinary. They are cleaning up our planet, making it a better place to live in, and empathizing with nature all along the way. They mobilize others into action and have drawn many to their work.
We at ICE believe that these people are the “Trendsetters for Sustainable Lifestyles”. Through the eight photobooks that follow we want to showcase their work to the world for the simple and elegant ways in which they have made a difference to the planet as individuals. They are doing their bit and as a result have positively affected communities and the environment around them. We hope they inspire our readers the way that they have inspired us. If we can learn from sustainability being their state of mind and from their work, we can make changes in our lives and fields of work to start living in a manner that will keep Earth a beautiful and habitable place for us for a very long time to come.
Love is a very complex emotion to decode. Or is it?
Machines and their relationship with humans have been explored in great detail. However the impact of machines on the future of love and the connection between technology and emotions seem more pertinent now than before.
Derived from the Latin term for “enslaved by” or “bound to”, Addictions primarily lead to cravings, dependence and uncontrollable use with negative consequences. Today, Addictions are being recognized as chronic diseases that alter both the structure as well as the function of the brain. With the evolution of humans and technology, addictions and compulsions are undergoing a constant metamorphosis and ave evolved from substance, behavioral and impulse controlled disorders to territories around Social media, electronics and applied science.
The first in a series on the Future of Money. Sponsored by The Institute of Customer Experience (ICE).
Today’s world increasingly challenges us to think differently about value and money. Almost everyone agrees that reputation is important. But how important is it? Does it have an impact on your finances? What is the currency of reputation and is it transferable or exchangeable?
Link - http://ice.humanfactors.com/money.html
Waste management is an important part of any sustainable future. In this report we present our views on Sustainable Futures for India from a waste management perspective.
-- We research and present our findings on why waste management is becoming increasingly important for India.
-- Who are the stakeholders involved in waste management? What happens to our waste - lifecycle of our waste.
-- We explore global trends in waste management and present innovative uses of waste from around the world.
-- Finally, we come down to the biggest challenges that India faces in waste management.
-- We identify two key pressing issues and propose innovative solutions for the same.
We come across dozens of design breakthroughs and technological innovations daily--so many that it's easy to miss important trends emerging in the chaos all around us and not connect the dots to see the BIG picture.
Here at The Institute for Customer Experience (ICE), we understand the business and design value of capturing the right trend insights at the right moment. We observe and analyse trends in design, technology, and business, and keep our fingers on the pulse of the global zeitgeist. In this series of trendbriefs, we bring you alerts on what's trending in our world and their possible impact on our future.
Subscription to ICE Breakers - http://eepurl.com/S1ZFL
Taking off our from our ICE breaker on Child's Play of the Future, here we present five futuristic scenarios of a highly intelligent and self-adapting toy and its interactions with a child.
Lifelogging is the practice of tracking personal data generated by our own behavioral activities in continuous digital streams. As it is slowly becoming mainstream, it raises a lot of intriguing questions and thoughts.
Lifelogging and self-tracking are altering the Futures of:
Memory,
Remembering,
Forgetting,
Storytelling,
Privacy,
Law enforcement,
Governance,
Bodies,
and our very Humanness.
This report explores these questions, thoughts and futures.
Will we stop packing a water bottle and collect air on-the-go? Will personal straws be the next big thing to ensure we get access to drinking water? Will ancient desalination techniques be our saving grace and enable us to engineer the future of water? Or will the ocean start cleaning itself?
The diversity of South Africa is on one hand a treasure that should be preserved and people still do recognize its importance and carry forward their cultural values. On the other hand, the very same diversity is a challenge for policy makers, marketers, advertisers, government and other institutions that want to reach out to greater masses and those who look for scalability.
However, the “mobile first” generation is the answer. The mobile revolution has introduced the people in South Africa to the power of social media, enabled them to open and operate bank accounts, helped them level their healthcare needs and now it is being used in many more avenues with greater possibilities.
This report aggregates the current trends to showcase the possibilities. Further on, it challenges the designers and innovators by planting the Brainstorming Seeds that will grow on to become possibilities of tomorrow—to build a more prosperous and vibrant Rainbow Nation!
As part of Institute of Customer Experience, we are constantly on the look out for opportunities that give us an insight into the future of things. We wanted to explore the concept of “beginner’s mind” which is said to be an attitude of openness, eagerness and lack of preconceptions and realized that it was the mind of a child that we wanted a peek into.
We ideated and devised a unique way of getting children to give us their insights about what they think will happen in the future. The result was a board game called “The Trip to the Future” which we used to conduct “playshops”. This method got us very exciting responses. We would love to take you through the journey.
How will the future of politics and political campaigning look like? Who will be the heroes in the future political battles? Where will the battle take place - on the streets or in the virtual world? What weapons will the future political parties use?
In this report, the Institute of Customer Experience raises many of such questions and presents possible scenarios that might become a reality given the present trends.
What is the future of transportation? We at the Institute of Customer Experience share our insights by analyzing the trends in technological advancements in transportation, which you can find on our Facebook page: facebook.com/UXTrendspotting
Wellness, in today’s context, is much more than diagnosing and curing poor health or diseases. It is a multidimensional and holistic state of being that is conscious, self-directed, and constantly evolving. Trying to make sense of wellness in a world of rising healthcare costs, shortage of wellness professionals, and technological advances in everything from computing to genetics, gives rise to several pertinent questions.
-- Will there still be any universally recognized concept of wellness? Or will it be hyper personalized to each individual's environments, genetics, and experiences?
-- What will wellness look and feel like in the future? What will be the new indicators of wellness?
-- As people experience enhanced wellness, will they become more self-aware and adopt additional experiences that will promote wellness?
-- Will we be more in control of our well-being? Or will we stop caring in a world where every aspect of our person is closely and constantly monitored and serviced?
-- As roles in the wellness ecosystem shift, what are the new well-being authorities and environments that will emerge?
-- Will big data around wellness help create better early warning systems about potential pandemics? Or will there be a drive to protect and hide our personal wellness and risk profiles online?
-- Will we ever be 'unwell', given all the new technologies to enhance (as well as prevent) wellness that will be in place?
-- Will we prefer being looked after and treated by robotic care givers/surgeons?
We attempt to answer these questions through 10 current trends we have identified, which will impact the course of wellness in the future.
Download the Wellness in 2050 Infographic - http://www.slideshare.net/UXTrendspotting/wellness-in-2050
Transhumanism is the belief or theory that the human race can evolve beyond its current physical and mental limitations by means of science and technology. The more we explored this subject, the more we got fascinated to see how people are riding on the current era technologies to surpass the capabilities of human body. If the current explorations in transhumanism are anything to go by, then, we believe the future will be very exciting!
In this report we explore the various technologies, people involved and the advancements made in the field of Transhumanism. We would love to hear your feedback, comments and suggestions. Please mail us at ice@humanfactors.com
3D printing is a form of additive manufacturing technology that allows for production of physical objects from digital data, constructing an object of virtually any shape layer-by-layer, by depositing material layers in sequence. 3D printing is a quickly expanding field, with popularity and uses for 3D printers growing every day.
In this report, ICE Team has aggregated all the intriguing applications of 3D printing. The report also includes information on how 3D printing works and major 3D printers available in the market. Finally our future scenarios for a world with 3D printing will provoke you and help you take a step up and see how the future might look like. As always we look forward to your comments, suggestions and feedback.
World population is growing continuously with more people living on the Earth than ever before. In 2007, humanity’s total ecological footprint was estimated at 1.5 planet Earths. Resources are becoming increasingly valuable as the Earth is the only source till date and others planets are still to become a viable source of these resources.
Projections estimate that we will need the equivalent of two planets by 2030 to meet our annual demands. The only way, we can reduce our footprint is by producing more with less, and consuming better, wiser and less - the way forward is better and 'frugal' choices!
In this report, we present the trends that encourage better choices; trends in Frugal Innovations, 'Jugaad' and Do-It-Yourself are explored to see how and where we can make our better choices for the future.
We conclude our report with 3 thought provoking future scenarios.
In 2013, the Institute of Customer Experience designed a board game called “Trip to the Future” which was used to conduct “playshops” for children to get insights into how children’s minds work in visualizing the future.
Three years later, at Kala Ghoda Arts Festival 2016 held in Mumbai, we had an opportunity to conduct two similar playshops—one for an NGO called Akanksha and the second for the KGAF 2016 festival children.
The responses we received were intriguing and actually point to current trends in 2016, indicating the directions in which technology will evolve in the future.
Response-Trend that emerged:
1. Practical space exploration
2. Beneficial intelligence
3. Maker movement (3D printing)
4. Space-saving automated tech
5. Cognitive Internet of Things
6. Immersive screen display
7. Augmented knowledge (and immortality)
For how long can the world’s agro-alimentary system be sustained? It is estimated that our global population is set to reach nine billion by 2050. Demand for food products will double by then, with an increased need for more animal proteins and processed foods. As a direct result, the food-processing sector is now gearing up to address how we are going to feed a population that is growing at a rate never experienced before by mankind.
Keeping a close eye on how our society becomes more conscientious about food waste and taking a look at the various solutions startups work out to hack the flawed system gives us an early glimpse into how positive shifts happen in the world. Food waste is a fascinating topic, and only partly because the current numbers and existing processes are outrageous.
Until 2009, there was not much deep information to be found about the exact scale and nature of the food loss and waste in the world. Published that same year, Tristam Stuart’s book, Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal provides a sobering trip to the reality of food. It also highlights an incredibly important fact: with small, common sense tweaks in habits and processes, the current grave situation can be turned on its head and solve the problem of the 842 million people living in hunger around the world too.
Globalization has resulted in increase in
availability and diversity of food, not necessarily
making access to food universal.
This kind of phenomenon is more visible in urban areas where food preferences are influenced by the purchasing power of individual among high income groups.
With the coming in of large multinational fast-food and supermarket chains, there is competition for market share of food purchasers.
Perfect Food: The Silicon Valley Food MovementTrung Ho
What would the food system look like if we started over?
That's the question that investors, entrepreneurs, and food scientists in Silicon Valley are asking as they've been working towards creating a more sustainable food system as the global population inches closer to 9.6 billion by 2050. Mayonnaise without eggs? Real-tasting meat made from plants? Living a healthy life on a nutritious drink alone? Food from the Silicon Valley Food Movement may sound crazy, but they're becoming more and more popular as large groups of investors, chefs, environmental and animal activists, consumers, and just about all walks of life are gravitating towards the idea that food can and should be healthy, tasty, and help make a positive difference in the world's future.
This report looks at the different food startups and its corresponding trends/driving factors, as well as its implications for big food brands. This report also takes a look at related food trends and its manifestations that are occurring outside of Silicon Valley.
What is your vision for the smart food initiative? & what led to the initiati...ICRISAT
I envision Smart Food becoming a part of regular diets and the food system. By building millets and sorghum as a major business and progressing from the Big 3 to create the Big 5 and later the Big 7, we will have a major impact on global issues of nutrition/health, environment, and farmer welfare. Millets are traditional foods of these areas, are super nutritious, survive with minimal water and are often
the last crop standing in times of drought. They are recognized as “Climate Smart” crops. They are also prone to very few pests and diseases and are often naturally organic and have a low carbon footprint.
Verbraucher weltweit werden beim Lebensmittelkauf von zwei übergeordneten Konsumtrends beeinflusst: Dem Wunsch nach einer nachhaltigen, ressourcensparenden Ernährungsweise und der Sehnsucht, den eigenen Individualismus auf dem Teller auszudrücken. Rund um diese Meta-Trends hat die Kommunikationsagentur Edelman.ergo im Rahmen der „Internationalen Grünen Woche“ 16 globale Lebensmitteltrends veröffentlicht.
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[ N E W P R O D U C T S ][ I F T 7 5 T H A N N I V E R S A R Y ]
Can GMOs and organic coexist?
Genetic engineering and ecologically responsible growing practices, such as organic, needn’t be strange bedfel-
lows, said plant geneticist Pamela Ronald in
an article “Sowing seeds for more abundant
rice crops” authored by Jennifer Weeks.
The article, which is part of a recent series
on “Women in Science,” is posted on the
website futurefood2050.com—a publishing
venture from IF T that offers solutions for
sustainably feeding an estimated 9+ billion
people by 2050.
“In a way, the organic vs. genetic engi-
neering debate is a false fight. They both
have the same goal, which is ecologically
based agriculture,” explained Ronald, who
is married to an organic farmer. “Organic
agriculture has been an important advocate
for more sustainable practices, but it also
has limitations. There are pests and dis-
eases that organic farming practices can’t
control.”
Ronald, a professor in the Department of
Plant Pathology and the Genome Center at
the University of California–Davis, believes
that you can’t generalize about an approach
or a seed that will solve all of our problems.
She is widely known for her work that
makes it easier to grow rice, one of the
world’s most important staple foods. The
role that genes play in a plant’s response to
the environment is the focus of Ronald’s
research at the university.
“Our laboratory has isolated and char-
acterized the Xa21 gene, which confers
resistance to a common rice pathogen,”
stated Ronald. “We also have identified a
gene called Sub1 that helps rice plants
resist flooding, which ruins 4 million tons of
rice every year in Bangladesh and India. My
collaborators at the International Rice
Research Institute introduced the Sub1
gene into varieties that are favored by farm-
ers in India, Bangladesh, and other
flood-prone countries. As farmers in that
region have adopted the new rice varieties
carrying the Sub1 flood-tolerant gene, they
have been able to produce more rice
because Sub1 rice produces threefold to
fourfold more grain compared to conven-
tional varieties when flooded. Last year 4
million farmers grew this type of rice.”
Ronald explained that her research is
very important for farmers in less-devel-
oped countries, such as eastern India and
Bangladesh. Many of them live on less than
$1 per day, and in Bangladesh two-thirds of
daily calories come from rice. Thus, it’s crit-
ical for families to achieve good yields.
Unlike many other genetically modified
crops, the rice with the Sub1 flood-tolerant
gene has not met resistance from the gen-
eral public or consumer activists. “Sub1 rice
was developed by marker-assisted breed-
ing, which is not a target for activists,”
noted Ronald. “About 50 years ago scien-
tists identified a very unusual rice plant that
could withstand two weeks of flooding. My
collaborators and I isola.
Breaking the food-system divide with Smart Food - good for you, the planet an...ICRISAT
For decades the vast majority of investments have flowed to the ‘Big 3’ crops- Wheat, maize and rice. Whether it is R&D, private industry investment, policy support, product development, or even development aid, the Big 3 have received the lion’s share across the globe. This is a problem because it has led to crops being grown in inappropriate agroecologies.This can negatively impact on the natural resources, and increase risk for farmers.It is also well known that globally we need more diversity on-farm, we need more diversity in our diets and more nutritious diets.We have to change peoples’ habits of eating mainly one food such as rice. If we do not change habits then there are not going to be the changes in global diets that are needed, both nutritionally and environmentally and for farmers’ sakes. Therefore we have set up the Smart Food movement.
World Environment Day is an annual event that is aimed at being the biggest and most widely celebrated global day for positive environmental action. World Environment Day activities take place all year round and climax on 5 June every year, involving everyone from everywhere.
The World Environment Day celebration began in 1972 and has grown to become one of the main vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and encourages political attention and action.
Through World Environment Day, the United Nations Environment Programme is able to personalize environmental issues and enable everyone to realize not only their responsibility, but also their power to become agents for change in support of sustainable and equitable development.
World Environment Day is also a day for people from all walks of life to come together to ensure a cleaner, greener and brighter outlook for themselves and future generations.
Everyone counts in this initiative and World Environment Day relies on you to make it happen! We call for action — organize a neighborhood clean-up, stop using plastic bags and get your community to do the same, stop food waste, walk to work, start a recycling drive . . . the possibilities are endless.
Incarceration has historically been about punishment but recently the trend has shifted towards reform, schooling, and an entrepreneurial spirit. In this report, we look at trends in prison experiences, technology, as well as edtech and entrepreneurship in prisons. Prisons are increasingly enabling inmates to get a vocational training, degrees, and even healing. No longer are inmates looked upon as "less than human" but there is a curiosity about their minds and views that are pro-reform so that they integrate well into society on their release. We then forecast three scenarios on mass incarceration in 2040.
This month, at the Institute of Customer Experience, we explore trends that are converting the world into a shopping interface. Here are the top six trend categories covered in this report.
1. Immersive Experiences: Take a closer look at how VR and AR are changing the shopping experience.
2. Intelligence Explosion with Human Touch: Explore examples of artificial intelligence in assisting our purchases.
3. Data Sync: Check out how research about customers’ previous shopping data enhances anticipatory shopping.
4. Fluidity Among Channels: View examples of seamless integration of social media, QVC, live shows and online shopping.
5. Post-Money Economy: As shopping enters the post-money economy see how cashless, cardless purchases and even staffless retail stores are trending.
6. Automated Consumerism: Check out technologies that are enabling restocking and various ways of looking for the best deals on products.
The potential unemployment owing to automation and improvements in ICTs is likely to be more drastic than earlier rounds of automation. Will people be redundant at the workplace? Is this likely to lead to unemployment and strife? Or can we use this opportunity to explore more art, travel, have more fun, in short be more human?
This report looks at the disruptive potential of automated vehicles: their impact on commuters, car companies, vehicle design and urban planning. It warns of the potential dangers of their unbridled proliferation and prerequisites to their effective deployment.
The Technological Singularity is a future point in time when technology will rapidly improve itself to surpass human intelligence, changing human life as we know it. In this report, the following topics are covered:
What is the Singularity?
How is it predicted?
What are its implications?
What does it mean for human evolution?
What when it happens: Utopia or doom?
Beginnings of the Singularity
Questions that arise
How will food and everything related to food will look like in future? What role will technology and innovation play in making people more conscious about what they eat?
What will be the food ecosystem of the future?
The current generation is getting health conscious and the same has been started reflecting in all the new age innovations.
In this report by the Institute of Customer Experience (ICE), we explore how the ecosystem around food will evolve and what are the key signals around this ecosystem.
As various smart home technology companies spring up in India, in this report, we explore how smart homes can benefit the elderly by listing the cultural dimensions of the elderly in India and taking a closer look at a model for elderly care in Norway for inspiration.
We come across dozens of design breakthroughs and technological innovations daily--so many that it's easy to miss important trends emerging in the chaos all around us and not connect the dots to see the BIG picture.
Here at The Institute for Customer Experience (ICE), we understand the business and design value of capturing the right trend insights at the right moment. We observe and analyse trends in design, technology, and business, and keep our fingers on the pulse of the global zeitgeist. In this series of trendbriefs, we bring you alerts on what's trending in our world and their possible impact on our future.
Subscription to ICE Breakers - http://eepurl.com/S1ZFL
View Archived ICE Breakers - http://ice.humanfactors.com/ice_breakers.html
What if, in the future…
• “We”go on to live for a long time, and become our own future? There are no children?
• We forget what a “child”is?
• Children are no longer ‘born’ but manufactured? A child becomes a technological marvel?
• All the beauty inside (and outside) can be fabricated, can be artificially modified,and can be quantified?
Our latest report explores the future of children. We look forward to hear your comments, views and opinions.
The history of sports probably extends as far back as the existence of people as active beings. The history of sports informs a great deal about social changes and about the nature of sport itself.
In the current era, as technology changes at an exponential rate, the social impacts are varied and deep rooted. This implies a great deal of change in sports too.
As we move into the era of robotics, machines, transhumans, cyborgs, prosthetics and exoskeletons, the future of sports seems even more disrupted. And it raises questions at different levels.
On the ground level, how will sports and sports-viewing experiences evolve? On the next level, how will the sportsperson of the future look like? And on a much higher level, we raise questions on ethics in sports, sportsmanship, and team spirit.
As an initiative for International Women's day (March 8), we thought of compiling brief statements on gender futures as each one of us visualizes and envisions these.
1. 1@2013, ICE, All rights reserved
Future Food, Food Future
A report
by
Deepa S Reddy
2. 2@2013, ICE, All rights reserved
It is a widely accepted fact that our present industrialized food
systems are irretrievably broken and in urgent need of repair. Our
production processes are highly resource-intensive; they leave
enormous environmental footprints, are increasingly volatile, and
unequal to the task of feeding a growing world population. Our
consumption, too, is growing voraciously; it is often whimsical,
wasteful, and in the end unsustainable.
By the year 2050, the world’s population is projected to swell to 9
billion. 80% will be urban-dwellers. Demand from developing countries
for a wider range of foods is on the rise. Experts estimate that we will
therefore need new farmland larger than the size of Brazil to produce
enough to meet the demands of growing populations.
Food security therefore represents one of the single biggest
challenges of our future, with environmental, economic, political, and
lifestyle implications. The future of food might be that we just won’t
have enough.
The Big Problem of Food
3. 3@2013, ICE, All rights reserved
What this report covers
ONE: How did we get here?
A quick overview of food trends from World War II to the present
TWO: Trending to the Future
Key trends and global realities
THREE: Future Foods
1. Eating Down the Chain
2. Nose-to-Tail Food
3. Engineered Edibles
4. Farm Fresh 2.0
5. Open Source Food
6. Food You Know
7. Simulated Food
FOUR: Re-telling the Story of Food
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Mechanization, speed, and routinization became key measures of efficiency in
“scientific” agricultural production.
Fast food restaurants like McDonald’s incorporate assembly line systems in food
manufacturing and preparation. The “industrial ideal” becomes the norm.
1940s-
“Henry Ford’s production
facilities … stood as a dramatic
example of the efficacy of
rational management
techniques, which many felt
should now be applied to
farming. As an International
Harvester promotion exhorted,
‘Every Farm a Factory.’”
—Deborah Fitzgerald, Every Farm a
Factory: The Industrial Ideal in
American Agriculture, 2003
How did we get here?
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The Green Revolution makes use of high-yielding
cereal varieties, pesticides, and fertilizers to boost
production. Its strategies help turn heavily
populated, food-deficit countries into self-sufficient
producers in just a few years, averting global food
crises.
The packaged foods boom begins. The food
industry leverages new technologies to lower cost
and advertising to demonstrate the added value of
processed foods.
Rachel Carson’s 1962 expose, Silent Spring, draws
attention to the damaging effects of widespread
DDT and other synthetic pesticide use on the
environment. Carson’s work is widely credited with
spurring a nascent environmental movement into
existence.
How did we get here?
1960s-
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The “natural food” movement coalesces around small
cooperatives and establishments which source local
and seasonal ingredients. Because it deviates from
mainstream production, however, the movement
lacks professional credibility, and is associated with
“be natural” hippie, counter-culture , and niche
markets for some decades yet.
Instant and frozen foods revolutionize home cookery.
Health and disease prevention begins to appear on
the consumer radar.
Tracking consumer purchase behavior becomes
commonplace, and the computer technology
revolution begins.
Experiments with novel tastes and ethnic foods
expands.
How did we get here?
1970s-
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The fair trade movement seeks to engage
producers directly in consumer operations.
Food labelling draws attention to nutritional
content and ethical provenance.
A hierarchy of products appear.
Supermarkets introduce luxury and premium
ranges. Labels and packaging use high-
quality seductive images.
A series of international meetings address
emerging problems: rising malnutrition, land
degradation from over-cultivation,
desertification, freshwater consumption by
agriculture, and biodiversity conservation.
The WHO recognizes obesity as a global
epidemic.
How did we get here?
1990s-
1992 Food Pyramid | Courtesy USDA
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Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation and Marion Nestle’s Food Politics make clear
connections between the methods of industrial food production, agricultural
policy, food-borne illness, childhood obesity, and the decline of the family meal
How did we get here?
2000s-
…instead of paying workers well enough to allow them to buy things like
cars, as Henry Ford proposed to do, companies like Wal-Mart and
McDonald’s pay their workers so poorly that they can afford only the
cheap, low-quality food these companies sell, creating a kind of
nonvirtuous circle driving down both wages and the quality of food. The
advent of fast food (and cheap food in general) has, in effect, subsidized
the decline of family incomes in America.
--Michael Pollan, “The food movement, rising,” 2010
Controversies over Monsanto’s heavy-handed leveraging of GMO technologies to
create industry monopolies fomented public mistrust of agri-business, and focused
intense public criticism on big ag-biotech companies claiming to address global
production through GM crop. The GM debate, however, remains deadlocked as
many continue to see GM foods as a solution to future food shortages.
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“Processed foods were once
the time-saving, awe-inducing
markers of an upwardly mobile
household. … Now, among the
upper middle classes, they're a
sure sign that someone does
not have a firm grip on what
the good life is.”
--Alexis Madrigal, “'Camp Grounded,'
'Digital Detox,' and the Age of Techno-
Anxiety” The Atlantic Magazine, July 9,
2013
LIFE Magazine, 10 Sep 1945
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How did we get here?
2000s-
Community-based co-ops and buyers clubs
increasingly circumvent mainstream production
and distribution networks, promoting green
parenting, sustainable agriculture, fairly priced
access to healthy food.
Organic food markets grow; the locavore
movement is born.
Reduced- No- Low- foods conscious of fats and
other ingredients complement the value of
nutritional supplements and DIY Doctoring.
Snacking and grazing are on the rise, along with
packaged “healthy” snacks .
Cheaper store brands gain popularity and
become fancier in the wake of global recession.
Gourmet options are available in fast food, casual
dining, and quick-fix meal offerings.
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“Imagine if we had a food system that actually produced wholesome food.
Imagine if it produced that food in a way that restored the land. Imagine if we
could eat every meal knowing these few simple things: What it is we’re eating.
Where it came from. How it found its way to our table. And what it really cost.
If that was the reality, then every meal would have the potential to be a perfect
meal. We would not need to go hunting for our connection to our food and the
web of life that produces it. We would no longer need any reminding that we
eat by the grace of nature, not industry, and that what we’re eating is never
anything more or less than the body of the world.
I don’t want to have to forage every meal. Most people don’t want to learn to
garden or hunt. But we can change the way we make and get our food so that
it becomes food again—something that feeds our bodies and our souls.
Imagine it: Every meal would connect us to the joy of living and the wonder of
nature. Every meal would be like saying grace.”
-- Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (2006)
A new imagination
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2010-
The Ethic of Sustainability
The industrial ideal is unravelling. No longer are we content just to consume, but seek to
manage sourcing and monitor quality. The experience of food extends from farm or “grow
your own” to table. From meat fingerprinting to GeoCertification, traceability is key.
Food is an experience of community, an expression of ethics, and a path to individual,
social, and environmental health.
Food-related start-ups fit in a “sustainability” investment portfolio, alongside solar energy
and electric cars, and investors are placing their bets on small tech start-ups to deliver the
next big innovation—for new experiences and more sustainable solutions.
Trending to the Future
1
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Digital Experience
We thrive on digital engagements with finding, sourcing, ordering, reviewing, and
investigating our foods. Apps lead us to healthier choices, demystify labels, and keep
things transparent.
57% of Pinterest customers interact with food-related content; 21% say they have made
subsequent purchases [PriceGrabber survey].
We enjoy food online almost more than on our plates: research suggests that excessive
posting and viewing of food images on social media sites like Instagram can decrease our
enjoyment of actual foods while eating. Food is a full-fledged digital experience.
2010-
chownow.com
Trending to the Future
2
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2010-
The Renewal of Convenience
Dining well on a shoestring no longer means having a ciabatta sandwich at Jack in the
Box. And stopping for food at a gas station no longer means settling for a lousy experience.
Mobile trucks and gas stations can serve up gourmet fare—quality matters, doesn’t have
to cost a bomb, and great food can come from anywhere.
Prefer to cook it yourself? Find all you need for a meal in a “one-stop” island at your grocer.
Fast food commitments to consistency and convenience meet sustainability, responsibility,
and locally sourced ingredients—in newly styled (often eco-conscious) retail spaces.
Trending to the Future
3
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2010-
Work Around Convention
The ascendance of artisan, indie, and small-batch foods is accompanied by direct-to-
consumer subscription-based distribution services which bypass conventional retailers.
Local gyms and other community gathering spots become distribution centers.
E-commerce expands via online farm-to-table grocers like Greenling, Good Eggs and
Farmigo, Door to Door Organics, Fresh Direct and Mile High Organics. Food Hub redefines
supply for large buyers like schools and hospitals.
Online /Mobile ordering takes away from conventional dining-out—literally.
Larger grocers, too, like Tesco in the UK run “click and collect” stores to complement the
conventional retail approach.
Trending to the Future
4
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Trending to the Future
2010-
Healthful Functionality
“In 2013, 58% of consumers thought a lot about the healthfulness of their
foods/beverages, 47% thought a lot about food ingredients, and 40%
frequently turned their thoughts to food safety” –2013 Food and Health
Survey. International Food Information Council Foundation, Washington,
D.C.
Thinking about food in terms of constituent ingredients,
nutritional value, dietary supplements, fortifications, and allergic
or medicinal effects leads to a continual search for health-
delivering high-impact super foods (and rejection of ingredients,
like sugar).
Snack foods and beverages packing functional punch address
all modern ailments from heart disease, diabetes, and
hypertension, to performance, pregnancy, and weightloss.
10 Superfoods infographic source:
http://www.thefutureofhealthnow.com/infographic-10-superfoods/
5
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But it’s not all a straight line…
The industrial ideal is in shambles but the GMO debate is
deadlocked.
Grow-It-Yourself (GIY) and Back-to-Basics digital detox movements
are stronger than ever but so is our faith in technology to deliver
innovative solutions.
Organics, fair-trade, and farm-direct foods are more common than
ever before, but convenience and speed still drive consumer
lifestyles.
We are seized of the urgency of disrupting conventional foodways
but are we doing enough to counter the impact of climate change?
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“The rate of increase in crop yields is
slowing – especially in wheat – raising
doubts as to whether food production will
keep up with the demand of a growing
population. Changes in temperature and
rainfall patterns could lead to food price
rises of between 3% and 84% by 2050.”
Source: Guardian, March 31 2014
World Bank Food Infographic 2014,
Although the total number of under-
nourished has fallen by 17 percent since
1990–92, 842 million or one in eight people
in the world were estimated to be suffering
from chronic hunger in 2011–13.
Source: UN FAO, The state of food insecurity in the world 2013
WASTEYIELD & COST
HUNGER
Global realities
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VOLATILITY & SOCIAL UNREST
Food prices have increased and become more volatile since 2006. UN FAO’s Price Index correlates with
“food riots” and other conflict. Death toll is shown in parentheses.
Graph: New England Complex Systems Institute
Global realities
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“The purely physical effects of climate change will, no
doubt, prove catastrophic. But the social effects
including, somewhere down the line, food riots, mass
starvation, state collapse, mass migrations, and conflicts
of every sort, up to and including full-scale war, could
prove even more disruptive and deadly.”
—Michael T. Klare, “The Hunger Wars in Our Future,”
Huffington Post, August 7, 2012
Global realities
Image Source: http://dollarvigilante.com/blog/2013/11/7/america-rumors-of-food-riots-realities-of-war.html
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Will food engineering deliver--again?
We once imagined the solution to increased demand from population growth in synthetic
foods. This futurist comic was published on November 14, 1965. By Athelstan Spilhaus
(illustrated by Gene Fawcett). Perhaps a little tongue-in-cheek—but prescient.
Source: http://www.nextnature.net/2013/12/bizarre-retro-futuristic-visions-of-meat/
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Will “sustainability” be enough?
“Farm-to-table may sound right—it’s direct and
connected—but really the farmer ends up
servicing the table, not the other way around. It
makes good agriculture difficult to sustain.”
“Our belief that we can create a
sustainable diet for ourselves by
cherry-picking great ingredients is
wrong. Because it’s too narrow-
minded. We can’t think about
changing parts of our system. We
need to think about redesigning the
system.”
The Third Plate “combines tastes not based on
convention, but because they fit together to
support the environment that produced them.”
Penguin, 2014
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WHAT WILL OUR SOLUTIONS BE THIS TIME AROUND?
WHAT WILL OUR FUTURE FOODS BE?
HOW WILL THEY TRANSFORM OUR WAYS OF
GROWING,
EATING,
LIVING,
CONNECTING,
and simply
BEING
ON THE PLANET?
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Problem: We will face dire resource shortages.
Solution: Tap ignored, abundant resources. Change “food” completely.
Jellyfish Dish: Oceans cover 70% of our earth’s surface, but
produce only a small percentage of our food. Jellyfish are
taking over warming waters and wreaking havoc. Why not
borrow from far eastern cuisines and try them?
Insect Protein Boost: Already a recognized source of protein for
several indigenous cultures, insects are on the list of potential
new sources of human food and animal feed.
While it takes 22 pounds of feed to get about 2 lbs of beef, it only
takes 3.75 pounds of feed to produce a 2 lbs of cricket. Insect
farming emits 1% of the greenhouse gases produced in rearing
sheep or cattle, and requires far less water.
Champions overcome “ick” factors by promoting insects as
animal feed, and incorporating insect-based flours to give
regular foods a nutritional boost. Example: Bitty Foods in San
Francisco.
Source: Edible Insects: Future Prospects for Food and Feed Security, UN FAO 2013
Image: http://www.citylab.com/weather/2014/06/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-
coming-jellyfish-apocalypse/373706/
Future Food 1: Eating Down the Chain
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Spotlight: ALGAE
At the base of the food chain are photosynthetic water-dwelling plant-like organisms that
already produce over half of the earth’s oxygen. The use of algae in producing alternative
fuels, CO2 sequestering, wastewater treatment, and manufacturing bioplastics and eco-
friendly fabrics and dyes is well-known.
Algal speed of growth means that “one acre of algae can produce the same amount of
protein in a year as 21 acres of soybeans or 49 acres of corn.” (Alltech) Certain algae are
farmed to produce food ingredients like Omega-3 fatty acids and natural food colorants
and dyes. Biomass discarded after “de-oiling” becomes valuable biofertilizer.
Image source: http://contemporaryfoodlab.com/en/journal/2014/05/powering-our-future-with-algae/
#sustainable #newproteins #nowaste
Future Food 1: Eating Down the Chain
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Spotlight: ALGAE
Designers Michiko Nitta and Michael Burton
envision a future where your clothes supply
nourishment via the Algaculture Symbiosis Suit.
“Algaculture designs a new symbiotic
relationship between humans and algae. It
proposes a future where humans will be
enhanced with algae living inside new bodily
organs, allowing us to be semi-photosynthetic.
Almost enabling us to become plant-like by
gaining food from light. As such, we will be
symbionts (meaning that both entities entirely
depend on each other for survival), entering
into a mutually beneficial relationship with the
algae.
Why design new food on what we have now,
when we could re-design how we fuel the body
altogether?”
Source: http://www.burtonnitta.co.uk/algaculture.html
#futureclothing #transhumanism #biofuel
#biomimicry #sustainable
Future Food 1: Eating Down the Chain
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Future Food 1: Eating Down the Chain
Spotlight: ALGAE
Urban Algae Canopy: A prototype for
building integrated farming and urban
architecture from London-based
ecoLogicStudio.
“It is now time to overcome the segregation
between technology and nature typical of
the mechanical age, to embrace a systemic
understanding of architecture” concludes
Claudia Pasquero of ecoLogicStudio.
“Once completed as part of EXPO2015 Future
food District the Urban Algae Canopy will
produce the oxygen equivalent of 4 hectares
of woodland and up to 150kg of biomass per
day, 60% of which are natural vegetal
proteins.”
Source: http://syndebio.com/urban-algae-canopy-ecologicstudio/
#futurehousing #futurecities #urbanfarming #newproteins
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Problem: There is terrific waste in the food system—from spoilage to packaging discarded.
Solution: rethink how we use, package, distribute, and store our resources.
Offal not Awful: As with insects, there’s nothing new about
offal consumption in many parts of the world, but modern
farming and consumer preferences have made offal
cookery both difficult and taboo.
As a response to the high-carbon-footprint of animal
farming and the waste of butchery, chefs and authors are
finding ways to take advantage of every last scrap of the
animal.
“[In 15 years,] meat will be an occasional food, served in
small portions (a good idea that’s already been explored),
and it will include eating offal—the nourishing foods we've
cast aside for so long,” says Chef and cookbook author
Deborah Madison.
Image source: Eve Turow on http://www.eveturow.com/blog/2014/5/11/the-gut-of-nose-to-tail-dining
#nofoodwaste #eatthewaste #nosetotail #sustainable
Future Food 2: Nose-to-Tail Food
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Future Food 2: Nose-to-Tail Food
Waste Economies #nofoodwaste #eatthewaste #nosetotail
#sustainable #socialenterprise
Waste Renewal: The Social Enterprise model tackles
waste by sourcing surplus foods and turning them
into marketable food products.
To find surplus foods going waste, there’s PareUp—
an app to connect hungry eaters with excess
restaurant and grocery store food at discounted
prices.
Foodsharing: Still a fringe practice, food-sharing is an
extension of sharing economy practices yet to take off.
Apps like Leftoverswap (connecting people with leftovers
and people looking for free meals) and non-profits like
foodsharing.de facilitate networking between individual
with and without food surpluses. Cropmobster facilitates
community redistribution and London-based Eatro seeks to
connects home cooks with other meal-seekers.
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Future Food 2: Nose-to-Tail Food
Better biodegradables #nomoreplastic #newconvenience
#sustainable #socialenterprise
“This too shall pass” is Swedish design
studio Tomorrow Machine’s line of
biodegradable packaging with the same
life-span as the foods it contains.
Manufactured from seaweed (for
smoothies), beeswax (for rice), and
caramelized sugar and wax (for oil).
Treeson’s water bottles are made from 100% toxin-
free plant-based materials, biodegradable and
easily flattened for free return via US Post. Each
bottle is recycled to produce clean energy with a
machine that converts the material into biogas. For
every bottle sold, the brand plants one tree; a
mobile app allows consumers to track where their
tree has been planted.
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Future Food 2: Nose-to-Tail Food
Back to Biomimicry
Inspired by how egg yolks retain shape in a thin
membrane and the formation of water droplets, a team
of London-based industrial design students--Rodrigo
Garcia Gonzalez, Pierre Paslier, Guillaume Couche—
developed Ooho, an edible, blob-like water container
you can make at home.
A single unit of Ooho is created using “spherification”: a
1940s technique using brown algae and calcium
chloride to create a gelatinous double membrane
made popular by the Spanish molecular gastronomy
restaurant elBulli. Ooho is a recipient of the 2014 Lexus
Design Award.
#DIY #biomimicry #nomoreplastic #socialenterprise
Wikicell packaging asks that you
think of all packaged foods as
though they are fruit. The skin is
not just edible, it’s nutritious. And
all you have to do is wash your
ice cream before you eat it.
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Problem: “Volatility” is the new normal.
Solution: Science and Technology still hold big promise in coping with uncertain futures.
GMO Food: Although opposition to GMOs continue to be strong,
many believe that genetic modification technologies represent
the only viable and fast alternative to creating adaptable crops
for unpredictable climates.
Most GMOs have been developed to increase yield, resist
disease, or tolerate herbicide. In the future, says the WHO,
“genetic modification could be aimed at altering the nutrient
content of food, reducing its allergenic potential, or improving the
efficiency of food production systems ... FAO/WHO Codex
guidelines exist for risk analysis of GM food.”
Image: Purple tomatoes packed with anthocyanins have anti-
inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic effects, as well as double the
shelf life of regular tomatoes.
Source: WHO--http://www.who.int/topics/food_genetically_modified/en/
#GMO #biotech #superfood #customized #proprietaryfood
Future Food 3: Engineered Edibles
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3D Printing #DIY #personalized #spacefood #digitalgastronomy
3D-printed foods powerfully capture our imaginations of a space-age, automated,
predictable, personalized form of food. In theory, 3D printing food does away with the farm
and produces an endless supply of food in just the form we please to end world hunger.
In practice, however, 3D-printed foods may be most readily suited to additive food
assemblages like pizza, as engineer Anjan Contractor’s open-source RepRap Mendel 3D
printer showed in early 2014.
Other applications include: ChefJetPro’s art candy sculptures, and the German company
Biozoon’s “smoothfood” molecular gastronomy adaptation for the elderly and infirm.
Current trends are to use 3D printers to create recognizable foods, but experts say we
need to re-imagine food altogether. Will 3D technology allow us to do so?
Image: FOODINI printing pizza. Source: http://www.cnet.com/news/3d-printed-pizza-heres-what-it-looks-like/
Future Food 3: Engineered Edibles
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3D Printing at Home #DIY #personalized #futurecooking #digitalgastronomy
Taking inspiration from molecular gastronomy (which
highlights the chemical reactions of cooking to create
new sensory experiences), Amit Zohan and Marcelo
Coelho propose “digital gastronomy.” Via the kitchen
machine Cornucopia, they exhort us to visualize all the
ways we can manipulate food digitally and
participate ourselves in its fabrication.
Cooking becomes a physical and chemical process
of “shaping edible matter into practical design
formats.” The goal is to “retain the freshness of
ingredients, increase the potential for personal
creative expression and develop a new and tighter
connection between food production and our digital
lives.”
Image: http://www.cmarcelo.com/cornucopia/
Amit Zoran and Marcelo Coelho. “Cornucopia: The Concept of Digital Gastronomy.” in Leonardo: Journal of the
International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology. Volume 44, Number 5, October 2011, pp. 425-431
Future Food 3: Engineered Edibles
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Future Food 3: Engineered Edibles
Meat Without Footprints #synthetic #labfab #crueltyfree
#3Dprinting #postcarnivore
Concerned about what modern meat production does
to the planet and to the animals? The solution may be
easier than going vegetarian—tissue engineering.
In 2013, Prof. Mark Post of Maastricht University,
produced the world's first lab-grown burger culturing
stem cells from a cow.
New York-based Modern Meadow is developing in vitro
meat using a 3-D printer with a cartridge of bio-ink
made of live cells that can be printed into a pre-set
shape to fuse into living tissue.
At least one study confirms that the environmental
impact of cultured meat is far lower than the
conventionally produced equivalent. Production costs,
however, are prohibitively high.
Tuomisto et.al. Environ. Sci. Technol., 2011, 45 (14), pp 6117–6123 Image: David Parry / PA Wire
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Problem: Conventional farming is inefficient. We’re running out of arable land. Farms are
too far away from where we live.
Solution: Rethink farming technologies. Bring farms closer to home.
Hydroponic Farms: PodPonics grows lettuces on an
11-acre facility near Atlanta without pesticides, using
recycled water, proprietary lighting, and nutrient
technology—and still produce more food per acre
than the traditional farm. By growing locally at or
near the point of consumption, they eliminate oil
dependence. Companies like BrightFarms step in to
help connect local grocers with local farmers,
bypassing distributors.
Film Farms use SkyGel--a super absorbent hydrophilic
booster which acts as a reservoir holding water up to
1,000 times its weight. Originally a technology
developed for medical applications and diapers,
film farming is being commercialized by Dubai-
based Agricel. It could transform desert landscapes
into growing regions.
#futureofwater #futurefarming #oilfree #indoorfarms
Image Source: http://agfundernews.com/podponics-hydroponic-produce-grower-closes-3-4m-series.html
Future Food 4: Farm Fresh 2.0
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Smart Farms
The Internet of Things (IoT) finds its way into “precision
agriculture” by way of AgSmarts ground sensors, which
monitor soil moisture and irrigation. OnFarm integrates
disparate devices in the field into one software
product—making an IoT platform into the “operating
system for the farm.” Research shows that using only
one type of precision technology can increase yield by
16% and cut down water use by 50%.*
Japanese IT company Fujitsu is growing lettuces in a
Fukushima facility once used to manufacture phone
chips. Fujitsu’s own data analytics platform “Akisai”
measures temperature, humidity, fertilization levels, and
other data from sensors, and can tell the producers how
the plants are growing and when they should be
harvested. The lab is developing a low-potassium
lettuce for patients with chronic kidney disease.
#bigdatafarming #superfood #indoorfarms
#smart #socialenterprise
*Source: http://www.state.gov/e/stas/series/212172.htm
Image source: http://www.techrepublic.com/pictures/photos-how-big-data-is-changing-the-modern-farm/7/
Future Food 4: Farm Fresh 2.0
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Pink Farms
Dickson Despommier's Vertical Farming ideas take
shape as innovators around the world find solutions to
the problem of light and energy consumption required
for efficient indoor growing.
Green Sense Farms in Indiana and Kyoto-based Nuvege
use blue and red Phillips LEDs. Since LEDs emit less heat,
plants can be placed closer to the light source, and
more grown in the same space. Light innovations allow
old buildings, abandoned subterranean tunnels and
other dark spaces to be reclaimed for vertical farming.
Using combinations of Hydroponics (no-soil growing),
Areoponics (food growth using air and mist), and
Aquaponics (aquatic and food symbiotic growth), and
cultivating dwarf-varieties developed for NASA, farms
can radically transform urban environments.
#futureoflighting #labgrown #indoorfarms
#verticalfarms #sustainable #spacefood
Image source:
http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21602194-indoor-farming-may-be-taking-root-light-fantastic
Future Food 4: Farm Fresh 2.0
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Sky Farms #futurecities #verticalfarms #urbanagriculture
#sustainable #farmtotable
“Urban Agriculture is a concept that restores our common knowledge of a cyclic system of
life and its necessities. We cannot distance ourselves from the resources we need or the
waste we produce.” – Plantagon (Sweeden)
Image Source: Fast Co July 2, 2014: http://tinyurl.com/l9u3pqxImage Source: Plantagon--plantagon.com
Future Food 4: Farm Fresh 2.0
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Future Food 4: Farm Fresh 2.0
Spotlight: The Plant #indoorfarms #urbanrenewal #urbanagriculture
#farmtotable #sustainable
Chicago’s “The Plant” repurposes an abandoned meatpacking factory into a self-
sufficient no-waste urban food-growing ecosystem. Waste from the city is close—a
valuable fuel—as is labor and demand. Distance from farm to table shrinks.
Image : http://www.plantchicago.com/about/our-model/
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Problem: Access to information is blocked by complex procedure and private interest.
Solution: Community-reinforcing, privacy respecting open source commitments.
Open Source GMO:
“GMO agriculture relies on the relatively new science of
bioinformatics, which means that DNA sequences look
a lot more like software code than a vegetable garden.
And if Monsanto is the Microsoft of food supply…
perhaps the time has come for the agricultural equi-
valent of Linux, the open-source operating system that
made computer programming a communal effort...
Like open-source software, open-source food genetics
would advance biological research … universities
would soon become hothouses of innovation.
Intellectual production without intellectual property
would thrive, as scientists gained access to DNA code in
all its infinite variety, along with the freedom to create
derivative work and redistribute findings.”
--Frederick Kaufman, “Let’s Make Genetically Modified Food Open-
Source,” Slate (July 2013)
#noGMO #biotech #hackGMO
Future Food 5: Open Source Food
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Linux for Lettuce
Three big-ag companies--Monsanto, DuPont, and
Syngenta--control half the world’s seed sales, many
of which carry patent protections. Organic seed
banks (eg. Navdanya in India) have long sought to
collect and share seeds to circumvent corporate and
proprietary control.
In April 2014, the Open Source Seed Initiative (OSSI), a
coalition of farmers, scientists and sustainable food
advocates, launched the Open Source Seed Pledge-
relinquishing legal licensing, and making uncompro-
mising commitment to sharing and free exchange.
Anyone opening a packet of OSSI’s seeds commits to
keeping them, and any future plant derivatives bred
using them, in the public domain.
#diybio #opensource #IP #seedcommons #biodiversity
Image: Bryce Richter, http://www.wisconline.com/featurenew1/seed_pledge_images.html
Future Food 5: Open Source Food
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Future Food 5: Open Source Food
The End of Food? #diybio #opensource #superfood #lifehack
#QS #selfexperiment #sustainable
#bulletproof
At one edge of the Quantified Self (QS)
movement, self-experiments like those that
produced Soylent and Bulletproof® coffee
promise to performance enhancement,
energy and weightloss with nutrient-dense
beverages. Soylent claims to be a complete
food-replacement for the future.
Basic recipes for both products are online, in
the open-source spirit.
diy.soylent.me offers tools for personalization
and further self-experimentation, while
Bulletproof®’s Dave Asprey accessorizes with
ingredients, sleep induction mats, heart-rate
variability sensors, and “Focus Brain Trainer”
sensor headbands in in his “Upgraded Self”
online shop.
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Problem: Digital lifestyles disconnect us from nature and the sources of our food.
Solution: Use the one to reach the other.
Reunite with your inner farmer and grow your
own hydroponic food. “Niwa is an automated,
hydroponic system that controls climate
variables and light cycles, automatically giving
your plants the perfect environment to grow,
and watering and feeding your plants when
they need it.
Because Niwa has the knowledge of a huge
number of plants stored in her system, no green
thumb or horticultural knowledge is needed.
… via the smartphone app you can manage
and monitor the experience from anywhere,
anytime with a touch of your screen”
#smart #indoorfarms #verticalfarms #growyourown
http://insights.wired.com/profiles/blogs/is-the-future-of-food-
growing-in-your-smartphone#axzz36UkZThmb
Future Food 6: Food You Know
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Monitor and Trace #surveillance #transparency #traceability #monitoring
Drones may be the route to ensuring transpa-
rency in a factory farming industry hidden
behind “ag-gag” laws. Their use in monitoring
Australian farms is being debated. A drone
documentation project by independent
journalist Will Potter, has been funded on
Kickstarter.
On the flip side, Syngenta Foundation’s
FarmForce app launched in Kenya (June 2014)
enables dispersed smallholder farmers to
manage production in real time and
demonstrate food safety compliance. The app
helps small farmers to be competitive in
producing for processors, agribusiness, and
retailers across developing countries.
Image source: http://civileats.com/2014/06/17/can-drones-expose-factory-farms-this-journalist-hopes-so/
Future Food 6: Food You Know
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Future Food 6: Food You Know
Point and Know #smart #digitalgastronomy #transparency #socialenterprise
Source: http://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/tellspec-food-scanner/
Tellspec is a hand-held IR (infra-red)
spectrometer scanner. With a custom algorithm
and a companion app on your smartphone, the
device determines the allergens, chemicals,
nutrients, calories, and ingredients in your food.
Spectrum data collected from food is sent to an
‘analysis engine’ in the cloud via your phone
(through Bluetooth), and all the aforementioned
nutritional info is then sent back to your phone.
The device can be particularly helpful to those
with food allergies or intolerances. It also helps
ensure food transparency.
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Problem: Supply cannot keep pace with population growth and demand.
Solution: Simulated foods and experiences.
“GhostFood explores eating in a future of and
biodiversity loss brought on by climate
change. The GhostFood mobile food trailer
serves scent-food pairings that are consumed
by the public using a wearable device that
adapts human physiology to enable taste
experiences of unavailable foods. Inspired by
insect physiology (insects use their antennae
to smell and thus navigate their world) and
long-standing human traditions of
technological extension of the senses, the
device inserts direct olfactory stimulation into
the eating experience. Scents of foods
threatened by climate change are paired
with foods made from climate change-resilient
foodstuffs, to provide the taste illusions of
foods that may soon no longer be available.”
By Artists Miriam Simun an Mirium Songster. Souce: http://www.miriamsimun.com/ghostfood/
#biodiversity #biomimicry #sensoryexperience
Future Food 7: Simulated Food
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Future Food 7: Simulated Food
Beyond Vegan
Faux meats and substitutes like “Tofurkey” are
nothing new, but companies are getting
better at aligning soy and other proteins to
mimic meaty textures and tastes.
Beyond Meat’s "chicken" strips and taco "beef"
crumble hit the US market in 2013, claiming to
produce faux chicken enough to save 1.5
million actual birds per year.
Beyond Eggs is Hampton Creek’s egg
substitute. Cheaper than real eggs, it’s
claimed to have longer shelf-life and lower
cholesterol.
Image sources: http://www.metronomegazette.com/2013/09/the-future-of-food.html & http://www.hamptoncreek.com/
#postcarnivore #veganmeat #synthetic
#crueltyfree #labfab #sustainable
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FOUR: Re-telling the Story of Food
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Will any of it work?
The efficacy of any intervention depends on cost, the permeation of technologies and the
uptake of new food ideas. Here are some common, obvious objections:
• 3D printing is constrained to industrial uses. 3 of 4 Americans say they wouldn’t eat it
anyway—at least some because it’s processed food.
• Similarly for IR (infra-red) spectrometers. Experts say that Tellspec just cannot do what it
promises well enough at its present cost.
• Will the high costs of lighting vertical gardens or building them into our cities remain
prohibitive? Will even those be able to grow enough to feed us?
• Faux meats and egg-substitutes may continue to cater to niche markets of activist
eaters.
• Open Source seeds will become ready raw material for new proprietary foods, the
Open Source Seed Pledge notwithstanding.
When will we be really ready to rethink “food”?
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Retelling the Story of Food
The movements that have brought us to our present level of awareness and activism are
still in force and likely to continue to shape our future: local, organics, grow your own,
community co-ops, animal rights /anti-cruelty, no GMO. “Sustainability” still tops the
agenda in imagining our future foods.
But conventional sustainability approaches have reached a saturation point, and the
“third plate” approach to rotational eating is not yet rooted.
In the meantime, Silicon Valley has stepped in to take on the challenge of shaping our
food futures. The result:
1. #hackfood: The pragmatics and economic drive of social entrepreneurism supplant
the idealism of organics. Data analytics, smart technologies, cloud computing, and the
hacker mindset are in.
2. #reconnectivity: Fixing the food chain means redesigning it from scratch—and re-
writing the conventional story of food. Whether reconnecting consumers with their
ingredients or ranchers with local buyers in next-gen online meat markets, sensors, smart
technologies and a host of new apps are re-connecting people and bypassing old
institutions in new and unexpected ways.
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Story re-telling
DIYBio
LifeHacksHealth
Wellness
Mobility,
Convenience
Re-connectivity
Digital
Gastronomy
Sustainability
Trust,
Traceability
PersonalizationAccess
Simulation
Fabrication
Social Enterprise
How will you re-tell the story of food?
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