A cooking demonstration involving 3D printing red meat will be a highlight at the 3D Food Printing Conference in Asia-Pacific, Melbourne.

With the rise of vegetarianism and mindful eating, fewer people are regularly turning to red meat for meals, especially not the offcuts. However, next week a conference at Monash University in Melbourne will focus on new-age food processing.

The 3D Food Printing conference is supported by Meat and Livestock Australia. A range of international speakers will be discussing how technology can benefit the industry.

The aim is to add value to the red meat industry. To do this, the focus will be on how technology can make secondary cuts and trim more appealing.

Meat and Livestock Australia’s (MLA) Michael Lee will be speaking at the event. He said: “These products can be used in areas such as the aged care sector, where red meat that is high in protein and nutrition can be presented in a form that is easy to chew and appetizing.”

As well as talks, there will also be a demonstration of 3D printing red meat. This cooking demonstration isn’t the first time meat is being 3D printed. In fact, the technology is already in use in novelty restaurants.

When will we see 3D Printed Meat on our Plates?

The aim is to use already available technology for the benefit of the meat industry. As well as this, attendees can learn about food components, nutrition, food design and business models. 

Lee explains: “However, significant research and development needs to be undertaken before we see these products widespread in any consumer market.”

Along with Lee, other speakers are; Frits Hoff from byFlow, Claire Smith from Forbes Meisner, Gerd Funk from Print2taste, Bhesh Bhandari from the University of Queensland and Dr. Aarti Tobin from CSIRO.

This isn’t the first 3D Food Printing Conference. Last year, the event was in Europe. Here, different types of products were on display as well as a broad list of restaurants already using 3D printing technology. However, if this technology is to become a popular food production method, more experimentation is needed.

Do you live in Melbourne and want to find out how 3D printing can benefit meat production? This year’s conference will be at Monash University on Tuesday, May 2nd.

(Lead Image: Carnivore Style)