Food, glorious food is our focus here. We can’t survive without it, and we certainly won’t survive if we don’t address the many issues in the food chain, from farming to processing to production to packaging to waste disposal. Here, we look at all the ways food is taking on new forms.
Super Food
Want to know what @mikebagale has been doing since leaving his role as executive chef of Alinea, Chicago’s 3 Michelin star “New American” restaurant? In this week’s content Premiere, we bring you an exclusive interview with the creative Michelin-starred chef, who dishes it up with Design Indaba founder Ravi Naidoo about Food is Medicine, Floating Food and Super Food Concepts. Mike has generously shared his medicinal soup recipe with the Design Indaba community. It's time to get cooking!
Gourmet Grubb
Insects as a protein source are a new normal all their own. Fast-tracking their uptake in our diets is food scientist Leah Bessa, co-founder of Cape Town’s Gourmet Grubb. Find out how this Head of Product Development uses a sustainable alternative to meat in Gourmet Grubb’s yummy treats.
KITCHEN TECHNOCRATS
The Act of Creation
In San Francisco, Creator has mechanized the creation of the hamburger à la Ford’s production line, except this isn’t in a factory, it’s on the high street.
Robo Chop
Imagine a restaurant powered entirely by robotic chefs instead of human cooks and kitchen hands. The world’s first pizza-making robot is on the menu thanks to French company Pazzi, and you can now grab slices of Pazzi pizza in its Parisian “Pazzeria”.
Spycing things up
In Boston, USA four MIT graduates have opened Spyce, a restaurant run entirely by robotic chefs that can cook the complex meals designed by Michelin star chef Daniel Boulud. Who knows, Michelin may even need to introduce a new star rating system…
All these new-wave, robot-enabled kitchen crews join the robotic bartenders and home kitchen robots that are already out there on the market.
WASTE NOT
Rubbish Removal
Restaurant Nolla in Helsinki, Finland goes from zero to hero with its extreme zero-waste approach. There’s no packaging allowed (they’re strict with their local-only suppliers), a set menu means that the restaurant isn’t overstocked with ingredients that don’t get used, and guests are sent home with a bag of compost made from leftovers. Even the food’s good!
Multiple Use
To help discourage patrons and take-away joints from using single-use plastic containers, design firm PriestmanGoode has created reusable fast food packaging that is so attractive, no-one would want to throw it away. Made from renewable materials like cocoa bean shells, the bring ‘em back bowls are perhaps a tad too lovely - the danger is that most people won’t want to return them, despite the deposit refund offered…
NEW FOOD
Bigger Apple
Tired of being served dinner? This luxury farm X hotel hybrid lets you forage for ingredients before you cook them. Sceptics amongst us would question the rates at the high-end Torgglerhof Apple in Italy’s South Tyrol region, but believers are lapping up the chance to “work” while on vacation – all in the name of a premium foodie escape. Guests are gifted their own apple trees on arrival, if that sweetens the deal? And you can always retreat to the spa if you’re tired of ploughing furrows…
Pet Ate
You may have chosen to go vegan, but vegetable-based proteins really aren’t the best for your canine bestie. Enter Bond, a start-up that lets you spoil your pet with a meaty treat, without an animal having to die for it. Cultured animal protein, chicken in this instance, is on the cards for our creatures’ comforts.
Allergy Accessory
Thanks to a reader and test strips, the wearable Allergy Amulet allows you to quickly and safely test your food before you eat it. This one is also sleek and sexy and won’t look out of place at a posh bistro. Only problem? It’s still in beta phase, despite laying claim to being the fastest allergen detector on the market!
