Would you eat 3D printed cheese? Dutch researchers believe – 3DPrint.com

Like many people I have a love/hate relationship with dairy products. I’m a big fan of chocolate and most ice creams, but when it comes to milk, I don’t like the taste. With a few exceptions, I am anti-cheese, which infuriates some of my fellow cheese fanatics. In another example of how life is unfair, I know many people who love all things dairy, but have had to stop consuming it due to the development of lactose intolerance. (They really hate me because, unlike them, I can eat cheese, but I want to throw away that gift.)

All of us—dairy lovers and non-dairy lovers alike—must find creative solutions to maintain healthy calcium levels and get something from grains. Thanks to a lactose-intolerant family member, growing up cow’s milk — rice milk (or, as a young cousin calls it, „rice juice” — is even more appetizing), almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk, etc. I can’t say I’m a huge fan of those alternatives, but I wouldn’t have thought of 3D printed milk as a… well, a thing. However, some Dutch scientists are – or will be – successful.

Researchers from University of Wageningen It has partnered with a dairy cooperative in the Netherlands Friesland Campina Explore 3D printed dairy products. Why? Cheese addicts, rejoice: One day you’ll be able to feed your habit guilt-free. Unlike the cheese alternatives available now, 3D-printed cheese will still be dairy-based, with the bad stuff — namely high cholesterol content — removed. The key is sodium caseinate, a protein found in milk. It’s a natural 3D printing material that, according to Wageningen professor Maarten Schutyser, has a „liquid feel” but solidifies quickly once ejected from the 3D printer.

However, solidified sodium caseinate is not the same as cheese, and that’s where things get nebulous. Additional ingredients must be added to the printer to get the final extruded product to match the taste and texture of cheese or butter, and the project is still in the experimental stage as to what those ingredients will be or look like. will be attached. Ideally, the end product is lactose-free milk with higher protein, lower fat, better taste and lower environmental impact than traditionally produced cheese. But after all that tinkering, is it still „real” milk, or cheese, or butter? (When is cheese not cheese? Discuss.)

It’s easy to be skeptical of such an endeavor. 3D printed milk doesn’t take cows out of the equation, as environmentalists raise concerns about reliance on livestock. Cow’s milk is still needed to get sodium caseinate to the bottom of the product, but if only sodium caseinate makes it more technically milky, why not stick with the alternatives that already exist? (It’s also interesting to note that sodium caseinate is an ingredient in „non-dairy” creamers, so obviously the term „dairy” is up for debate.)

Environmental benefits may come from spoilage waste during the manufacturing process, but again, the question of whether 3D printing dairy products is worth it is still up in the air. Now, this is an experiment, and whether or not it actually works (Bal-yeah? Sorry. Really, sorry.) remains to be seen. The same can be said for most 3D printed foods, and in fact, 3D food printers are mainly doing that right now as researchers study ways to print new foods rather than just extruding chocolate pastes into fun shapes. The ultimate question is whether 3D printing can be used to create healthier, better-tasting foods, or whether it’s more of a novelty than a novelty, with far-reaching benefits over traditional counterparts.

Then there is a question about the reception of the public. GMOs are the bogeyman of the moment, and raw or paleo diets are the current fad as nutritionists advise to stop eating processed foods. Will people trust such altered and processed dairy products? Studies show that the majority of people are still enthusiastic about the idea of ​​3D printed food. It’s a question of whether scientists can really create 3D printed foods, the benefits of which reveal themselves clearly and significantly, and it’s going to take some serious marketing to get the public on board. But we’ll never know unless we try. What do you think about this? Talk about it in 3D Printed Milk Forum Done at 3DPB.com.

[Source: Takepart]