www.foodtechnology.co.nz 17 Our own work is at the research end of the spectrum, in an attempt to push boundaries. We are using a plain white, gluten-free batter as a base to be cooked rapidly after printing. At the point of depositing we are mixing in colour, flavour and nutrients. This approach provides for great flexibility in the product and carries the food objects into cake/bread structures. We see New Zealand’s opportunity is unlikely to be in the mechanical devices (that will be the domain of appliance manufacturers) but in algorithms, printing ingredients and perhaps in component intellectual property. How will 3D food printing develop? Rapidly! Up from about six labs working six years ago, there must be more than 60 world-wide now, with half a dozen commercially available units. I had picked that quick food restaurants would be the first major application, driven by ease of customisation, but it appears to be high-end restaurants at this point of evolution, driven by novelty and entertainment. Printers may well end up in every kitchen, but that is a long way off. And multi-station printers may well find a place in food manufacture for varied items like sweets, cakes and biscuits, or in large-scale customised food service such as institutions, hospitals and airlines. Should 3D printed food ever reach 1% of the food we eat on this planet, it will be very big business indeed. Professor Richard Archer works in the Massey University’s Institute of Food Science and Technology. LOW VOC, NON-TAINT FLOORS FOR THE FOOD INDUSTRY Sika is a global specialist in food-friendly, hard wearing, hygienic, easy-clean flooring systems that can be formulated to resist everything from lactic acid to heavy forklift traffic. For more information on the best flooring system for your food production or processing areas, contact Max Tombleson, 027 597 0703 or tombleson.max@nz.sika.com Scan for more info and Data Sheets www.sika.co.nz Sika 1323 Should 3D printed food ever reach 1% of the food we eat on this planet, it will be very big business indeed.
1-48 FT June16
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