The FutureKitchen – new and innovative sustainable food choices

 Sponsored by the FutureKitchen project

The number of people adopting a plant based diet for environmental, animal welfare or health reasons has increased exponentially over the last few years.

And people have never been so aware of the consequences of climate change. From the surge in Veganism, increasing weather changes and the subsequent dramatic environmental impacts both on wildlife and homes, to the appearance of activists – people are starting to wake up and take action

It’s evident that vegan and more sustainable food choices are here to stay. 

There are ever expanding plant based options in retailers and restaurants and we are seeing the reduction in the use of plastics in packaging and more recycling options.

Many new sustainable businesses are appearing, giving consumers more choice – some interesting UK examples; 

• Oddbox

• To good to go 

• Zero waste stores offering refills. 

• And food products using unloved produce;

• Dash water 

• Rubies in the rubble 

There are also lots of interesting new resources about sustainable food choices and technologies- like the FutureKitchen project – a series of infotainment videos, including virtual reality.

Imagine the future of food with Virtual Reality

The FutureKitchen videos, published on FoodUnfolded, are aimed at young people to get inspired and learn about food tech. This series shows how food science, technology and innovation can advance sustainability.

All videos were developed in a co-creation process, together with academia, start-ups, industry partners and the consumer.

Learn more about the project, funded by EIT Food, an independent EU body: https://www.eitfood.eu/projects/the-futurekitchen-virtual-reality-and-eatinghealthy-video-infotainment-series-2020.

The educational videos include:

• Rapeseed protein – a new plant based protein

In this video you can see how the leftover material from rapeseed oil is used to create a sustainable from of plant based protein.

• Algae – Alternative protein source

This video takes viewers to Iceland to discover an indoor algae farm. It is carbon-negative and produces nutritious algae in an effective way.

• Vertical farms in your kitchen

Can you imagine having a farm next to your fridge? In a vertical farm, you can maintain optimal growing conditions and harvest fresh nutritious food in your own home!

*The project is led by the Icelandic food and biotech company Matís, partnering with a variety of EIT Food partners and startups. These are EUFIC, IMDEA Food Institute, University of Cambridge, as well as innovative and progressive food related companies such as Döhler, NapiFeryn BioTech, Essento, 3FBio, Vaxa, Natural Machines, and Alberts.

To learn how much protein different meals contain please check these infographics;