Abstract
Consumption has changed massively throughout the centuries; after the industrial revolution on, changing patterns of food consumption have altered the social relations related to meal structures and sociality. The last decades have seen social trends such as nutrition, health and environmental concern becoming central for food consumption, but few research has revolved around the role of food technologies in this. This chapter provide insights about the role of modern technologies at the overlapping industrial, household or professional service level, while raising questions on the restructuring patterns of consumption.
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Notes
- 1.
The EU has also been actively involved in the field through the PERFORMANCE project (Cordis 2018) which aims to predominately help people that face dysphagia problems and is currently implemented in some 1000 households in Germany already. In America, NASA has been involved and actively engaged in developing the field since 2013 viewing advanced food technologies as the way to tackle space missions’ nutritional demands effectively. Though the direct scope of the research is efficiently overcoming the aforementioned problems, greater humanitarian benefits were also stated to constitute indirect powerful drives for the generous funding (Dunbar 2013).
- 2.
As listed in their website, this homogenizer can make vinaigrettes without using an emulsifier, give wine a fuller and rounder mouth feel, infuse cocktails and other liquids with volatile aromas of fresh herbs or spices, intensify fruit or vegetable pulp for sauces and puree, tenderize and marinate meat in quick time, boost flavor without overcooking fish and other delicate proteins (https://polyscienceculinary.com/products/the-sonicprep-ultrasonic-homogenizer).
- 3.
One field-tested addition in the robotic chefs comes in the form of burger-cooking robots (under the anticipating name of ‘Flippy’; Miso Robotics 2018). This flipper-robot uses thermal sensors and cameras to get feedback on the grilling process. Consequently, after the CPU evaluates the data, a robotic arm performs corrective adjustments and also serves the burger to the customer research and development already tread the final stages. Investments to implement this technology in the next 2 years in 50 restaurants has been notable (Condliffe 2017).
- 4.
Moley is a small UK company that through collaboration with Stanford University professors and miscellaneous reputable tech companies like Shadow Robot. The Moley device crosses the threshold of what is considered to be purely 3D food printing and introduces general robotics to the mix.
- 5.
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Piatti, C., Khajehei, F. (2019). Food Consumption and Technologies. In: Piatti, C., Graeff-Hönninger, S., Khajehei, F. (eds) Food Tech Transitions. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-21059-5_7
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