DailyDirt: Will Refill Cartridges For Food Printers Be Insanely Expensive?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Fri, Aug 31st 2012 5:00pm — Michael Ho

The technology for 3D printing is getting better and cheaper all the time, but some folks think the "killer app" for these printing machines is in food preparation. Food printers aren't quite like Star Trek replicators just yet -- nor is there a way to eliminate the scarcity of food. Still, it'll be pretty cool when most households own an oven, stove, microwave oven... and a 3D food printer.

Peter Thiel's philanthropic foundation has invested in Modern Meadow -- a company that will develop 3D bioprinting techniques for disrupting the current meat industry. Growing edible meat tissue without a farm could be more environmentally friendly, but one of the company's first goals is to just grow a 1-inch long piece of synthetic meat suitable for eating. [url]
Cornell University has a food printing lab as part of its Fab@Home venture. This group has been working on printing food since 2007, and the researchers speculate that food printers could vastly reduce the time people spend preparing food. [url]
Burritob0t is an open source project to create a Tex-Mex 3D printer, capable of generating tasty, custom burritos from extruding ingredients such as beans, rice, cheese and salsa onto a tortilla. Unfortunately, lettuce and chunky salsa aren't on this robot's menu -- but perhaps a meat paste could be added... [url]
Chocolate lovers in the UK might want to thank researchers at the University of Exeter for creating a 3D printer that prints layers of chocolate. These developers want to create a website that anyone can print chocolate creations from -- but they'll probably need a really good Spam filter before they turn that feature on. [url]

If you'd like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post.

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Filed Under: 3d printers, burrito, burritob0t, chocolate, fab@home, food, peter thiel, replicator
Companies: modern meadow

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BITCH I AM KING OF ALL TROLLS YOU CANT STOP ME I A, 31 Aug 2012 @ 5:27pm

I AM KING OF ALL TROLLS YOU CANT STOP HAHAHAHAHA I AM SO EVIL
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ken (profile), 31 Aug 2012 @ 5:34pm

3D Printing Could Change the World
3D printing may make the fights over music and movie copying look tame in comparison. Imagine when you can print physical objects. The interests that manufacture these things are going to demand their products be covered under copyrights.

What this will do is make a lot of manufacturing obsolete. It could fundamentally change our economy since we may no longer rely on corporations nor the work others to provide for our own needs.

When we can provide our own wants and needs their is little need for money or other trading instruments since the basis for money changing hands is because person A has something person B wants and must trade something B wants to get it. If Person A can get what he wants without person B then there is no need for any kind of trading.
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bitch i am king of all trolls you cant stop me l A, 31 Aug 2012 @ 5:37pm

Re: 3D Printing Could Change the World
bitch i am king of all trolls you cant stop mr hahahaha i am so evil
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Dave Miller (profile), 31 Aug 2012 @ 5:41pm

Spam filters?
But what if what I want is Spam?
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BITCH I AM KING OF ALL TROLLS YOU CANT STOP ME I A, 31 Aug 2012 @ 5:42pm

Re: Spam filters?
HAHA YOU CANT STOP ME HAHAHAHAHA I AM SO EVIL
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abc gum, 31 Aug 2012 @ 6:01pm

I wonder how much pink slime cartridges will cost.
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el don, 31 Aug 2012 @ 6:25pm

re 3D printing for food?
you're kidding, right?
we're all knowing that even GM food is frankensteinian for our bio-security, that additives and unnatural foods can even be the causee of autism in children for gawds sake, and now someone is seriously advocating that we replicate food?
er.. evolution? the delicate relationship between the gut and the intake? the function of the whole greater than the sum of its parts? techno-wonderland is not real, and people who mindlessly applaud every advance in technical matters need to get out more.
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ChrisB (profile), 1 Sep 2012 @ 6:41am

Re: 3D Printing Could Change the World
3D printing allows niche manufacturing, just like the internet allows niche content. I went into an auto parts store last week and looked at all the boxes on shelves. This is just stupid. (The same stupidity of the bookstore with random books, and a record store with random CDs.) How do they know what is going to be in demand tomorrow? Having small store with a 3D printer and a million part files is the future. There is still room for corporations, but they need to adapt!
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abc gum, 1 Sep 2012 @ 7:13am

Re: re 3D printing for food?
You assume they give a shit about your well being. Be thankful that fresh produce and real meat are still available.
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Wally (profile), 1 Sep 2012 @ 5:10pm

Med
"Peter Thiel's philanthropic foundation has invested in Modern Meadow -- a company that will develop 3D bioprinting techniques for disrupting the current meat industry. Growing edible meat tissue without a farm could be more environmentally friendly, but one of the company's first goals is to just grow a 1-inch long piece of synthetic meat suitable for eating."

Forget the foods industry.... How about printing kidneys (long shot, has to be exact) and hearts (more viable because we can print the cartilage structures). There is no question in my mind that the 3d printing tech will mature into a less expensive, viable way of growing replacement body parts.
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BITCH I AM KING OFF ALL TROLLS L A, 1 Sep 2012 @ 5:49pm

YOU CANT STOP ME SO GET MAD ALL YOU WANT
hahhahahahhahahahhahahahhahahhah
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BITCH I AM KING OF ALL TROLLS YOU CANT STOP ME I A, 1 Sep 2012 @ 5:52pm

Re: Med
BITCH YOU CANT STOP ME I HEARD WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT HOW TO DEAL WITH A TROLL AND GUESS WHAT IF YOU SAY SOMETHING NICE IT WONT WORK
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Wally (profile), 1 Sep 2012 @ 8:14pm

Re: Re: Med
Your reason for doing this astounds me. I'm sort of curious as to why you do this. Do you want an open dialogue where we can discuss your personal problems in private? I am a counselor you know.
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Anonymous Coward, 2 Sep 2012 @ 1:40pm

Re: Re: 3D Printing Could Change the World
Why adapt when it's easier to lobby for IP laws to restrict competition?
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BITCH I AM KING OF ALL TROLLS YOU CANT STOP MR L A, 3 Sep 2012 @ 4:14am

Re: Re: Re: Med
LALALA I CANT HEAR YOU
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meddle (profile), 4 Sep 2012 @ 6:36am

It's PEOPLE! Soylent Green is made out of PEOPLE!
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