How 3D Food Printers Work to Create Edible Food

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A new technology is slowly becoming popular in the food industry and is breaking the norms of what the world of culinary has always believed in: 3D food printing. 

The Wall Street Journal reports that 3D food printing or additive manufacturing has been invented in the 1980s, where it creates food through the process of layering. The CandyFab Project, owned by the Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories, has initiated the trend through the creation of complex food made from sugar. It has been made possible through the process of melting and sintering—a layer of sugar is repeatedly melted then lowered into a bed of sugar.

Many startup companies are looking into the likelihood of investing in this technology as they believe this could change the way how consumers think about food. Foodini is already thinking of starting its very own 3D food printer to be sold to the general public.

Bloomberg writes that there are now several food products that have undergone changes through the use of the 3D food printer. Big chocolate brand Hershey is in talks with 3D Systems to start their exploration and development of food treats using the 3D printer.

Pizza is another one. NASA has made this possible for the astronauts when they granted Systems & Material Research to develop a pizza printer. The prototype has been reported to have used pantry staples powdered food and oils to initially print a pizza dough, followed by a tomato base, also in powdered form, and lastly, a printed protein layer.

So how does the 3D printer works? According to Popular Mechanics, it works like an ink jet printer wherein a syringe-based machine deposits layers of liquids based on an object design uploaded by a user.

Cornell’s Fab Home has started the idea online, where people put different things like silicons and epoxies then started getting creative by adding things they can see in the kitchen, like Nutella, liquid cheese, and the like.

The food industry will definitely be different in the future, when technologies like this start to boom. The innovation can impact food businesses. Recipes may be replaced and the Internet can astound people by whipping up their favorite gourmet meal in as fast as 15 seconds. The future of residential and commercial kitchen may be the most high-tech place in your home or work place.