Hi everyone
Today, there are more hungry people in the world than at any other time in human history. Approximately one bilion people, most of whom are residents of developing countries, don't have a sufficient supply of food to eat, and the situation seems to be going from bad to worse. However, not all hope is lost. The United States' space agency, NASA, is currently into a 3D food printer that may well provide food solutions for both astronauts travelling to distant planets and the starving citizens of our own planet.
Three-dimensional printers were invented in the 1980s but were primarily used in idustry and work-related environments. In recent years they have improved greatly and can now produce a variety of objects from car engine parts to toys. They have already changed the way that many companies and industries work and now, as the printers get cheaper, it looks like their benefits will be shared by more and more people in their homes.
The dream of producing food on a large scale with a three-dimensional printer seems to be approaching reality. Indeed, NASA has already succeeded in marking a pizza, and plans to develop the printer so that it will be able to produce any type of food at the touch of a button. It looks set to change our perspective of what food is and how it is prepared. Families will simply have to buy nutritional, replaceable cartridges of various powders and oils from their local shops and then select the meal of their preference.
The 3d printer could play a more critical role in developing countries where numerous families living in poverty die from starvation. This is despite the efforsts of a number of charitable organisations, which attempt to provide food to the most needy. The biggest challenge for the charities is to transport the food to te region by ships and lorries. Apart from the transport expense, there is also a risk that some foodstuffs may go bad or become inedible by the time they are given to the hungry. It is also widely believed that food will become more exprensive in the years to come. As the population grows, particularly in developing countries, cheap healthy food will become even more of a necessity.
Three-dimensional food printers have the potential to ease these problems because all the food ingredients needed will be in powder form, which will be conveniently stored in small cartidges which last for thirty years. Therefore, "food" could be transported at a steady rate and a large amount could be given out to families to guarantee their supply of food for years. The printer will incorporate proteins, sugars, and carbohydrates in order to create edible, potentially tasty food products. It will come to be regarded as a cheaper alternative to the higher-priced food. There will also be some alternative food sources in the printer, which will include insects, these alternatives will provide the same nutrents necessary for a person to develop, and will help keep the cost of the printer down so it will be affordable across the world.
