www.foodtechnology.co.nz 25 FOOD IN 50 YEARS I was born exactly 50 years ago in cold, wet East London, where our neighbours regularly ate meat and two vege, fish and chips, chip butties or jellied eels… tasteless but wholesome food. In our house everything was highly spiced Jamaican fare. I don’t remember much processed food…why? Too expensive. We had a small garden from which my mother would supplement our meagre meat portions: fresh herbs, garlic, chilli and seasonal vegetables. Fast forward 50 years and this is how I cook today. Now here I am, considering what could possibly be served for meals in 2066, 100 years after my birth. Luckily for me, I have a wide audience base on which to carry out a small qualitative study asking, ‘what do you think we will be eating in 50 years?’ From my corporate friends – commuting and working a full 12-hour day – the hope of food that could ease the burden of time. Minimal cooking, highly processed, big flavours, midpriced and…er…healthy!! For my ingredient-loving foodie friends, more interesting trends that fall in and out of fashion: lamb shanks, kale, chia seeds, quinoa, kimchi, brown rice, goji berries, kefir (fermented milk), soy. And dietary fads…paleo, vegan or raw. Parents of young children / grandchildren are really concerned about health, sprayfree, organic, free range. Being a creative and not scientific at all, and looking at the current economy, news and following social trends, it seems to me the world is fast running out of food and the space in which to produce enough food for the burgeoning populations. A recent trip to the USA was terrifying for me, when I queued for ‘all you can eat fruit salad’ to find every strawberry, rosy red and as big as my fist. I just about passed out. So for me in 50 years, food will have rotated a full circle, with a tilt towards a healthier, more nutritious lifestyle. Most of us have enough space to grow a large percentage of our own food 365 days of the year, whether in the back yard or in tubs on balconies: herbs, seasonal veges and fruit that can be combined with foods containing high levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and omega oil, as well as combinations of fatty acids, which have a profound, medicinal, positive health effect, like coconut oil, soy, fish, nuts, seeds. Unlike today, where on average around one in five people are non meat eaters, I believe in 50 years we will see less meat eaters and more people turning to a vegetarian diet. My recipes are reflective of this change. Jax Hamilton is a celebrity chef and author based in Christchurch. JAX HAMILTON… Jax’s new gluten-free, dairy-free and vegetarian hot chilli sauce and jerk marinade is made from authentic Jamaican Scotch Bonnett pepper seeds homegrown in the Hawke’s Bay for a Jamaican/Kiwi blend.
FT-May16
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