Brits ‘could be eating 3D-printed chocolate, edible insects and lab-grown foie gras by 2035’

Lab-grown foie gras, edible insects and 3D-printed chocolate are among the food innovations likely to reach the UK public within 15 years, experts have said.

A new report by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) highlights the innovative food technologies that are likely to transform UK plates by 2035 and the steps being taken to ensure they are safe.

Technologies that could soon reach British plates include foods grown in the laboratory from animal and plant cells, such as steak, chicken and duck foie gras; The two products are currently being evaluated for risk by regulators and others preparing for the process.

Edible insects can be sold whole or used as ingredients, such as powders added to familiar foods; Four species are currently sold as food or animal feed in the UK under temporary regulations while they undergo safety assessments.

The FSA said allergenic proteins from shellfish can also be found in edible insects, meaning people with shellfish allergies could have a similar reaction to eating insect products, which is one of the things to consider as part of the safety assessment for new foods.

Another food innovation that already exists and is increasingly becoming mainstream is “vertical farming”; It is growing plants such as lettuce in highly controlled indoor areas where nutrients are fully delivered to provide crops all year round.

In the future, the UK could see technologies that use plants as tiny factories to produce specific food ingredients and “gas fermentation”, which uses microbes to convert captured carbon dioxide into single-celled proteins for use in food.

The report also looks at “largely conceptual innovations” such as 3D printed foods, which allow manufacturers to produce foods like chocolate or mashed potatoes by layering edible materials through a printer; however, these are not expected to reach a broad market within the next five to 10 years.

But experts said such technology could help create personalized foods for people who have difficulty swallowing for medical reasons, for example.

FSA deputy director for innovation Dr. Thomas Vincent said: “The food system is always evolving and as a regulator we need to keep up with this and keep up with the industry so we can help ensure new products are safe.”

He said it was necessary to ensure that new production methods met food safety and hygiene standards, that allergies were taken into account as part of safety assessments, and that nutrition and diet were taken into account; therefore, it provides what consumers can expect nutritionally if a lab-grown food is replacing meat.

Amid concerns about the long-term health effects of ultra-processed foods currently widely consumed, Dr. Vincent said safety assessments look at not only what products are made of, but also how they are made, “what is the manufacturing process and is it safe?” he said.

“What we’re doing is a really comprehensive, holistic safety assessment that looks at things like allergenicity, but also looks at toxicology and microbial contamination of foods.

“It looks at acute risks, meaning things that can happen when you eat food, but it also looks at chronic risks, meaning there are longer-term potential risks, and that includes things like carcinogens, for example,” he said.