Food in Fifty Years… I have long held a view that by the time I retire, cooking will be a hobby… like gardening is for many today. I started saying this before I began Food in a Minute and that was 20 years ago. In 20 more years’ time, I am sure it will be. Food for eating will be assembled in the home, and the people of the day will consider this cooking. The days of peeling and chopping will disappear. What that food will look like, I fear, will be tragic for the majority. Lack of skills both to buy and to cook, food sourced more internationally than locally – due to cost and trade agreements – will see us requiring food being wrapped and labelled to within an inch of its life. Purchasing options 28 www.foodtechnology.co.nz such as produce varieties and cuts of meat will be dictated by the power of the supermarkets and, while there will still be farm gate sales and fruit and veg/butchery shops, these will be hard to find. Choice and quality will be seriously limited for those who live on a budget. Against that will be those who have the money to buy organic and free range, and to shop at fine food establishments which, by their nature, will be able to continue to sell produce prepared by niche marketers. Generally though, food will be more wrapped, portion controlled and delivered. Eventually many people will go back to the future by ordering online and having food delivered, be it ready to cook meals or produce, and these services will be run by large conglomerates which have the money to set up the extensive back-end requirements to run these services. In all, I see less choice, more packaging, more processed, longer shelf life and delivered – as I say, cooking will be a hobby. And for the last word, I seriously hope I am wrong. Allyson Gofton is an Aucklandbased food editor, top-selling cookbook author and media presenter. www.ecook.co.nz by Allyson Gofton F O O D F O R T H O U G H T Allyson Gofton
FT FEB2016-HR
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