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DOWN ON THE FARM NANOTECHNOLOGY IN THE FOOD CHAIN DOWN FARM THE NANOTECHNOLOGY IN THE FOOD CHAIN Corporations worldwide are engaged in nanotechnology research to put nanoparticles into the food we eat, the cosmetics we use and the packaging that contains them. Part 2 of 2 handful of food and nutrition products containing invisible nano-scale additives are already commercially available. Hundreds of companies are conducting research and development (R&D) on the use of nanotech to engineer, process, package and deliver food and nutrients to our shopping baskets and our plates. Among them are giant food and beverage corporations as well as tiny nanotech start-ups. According to Jozef Kokini, the director of the Center for Advanced Food Technology at Rutgers University (New Jersey, USA), "every major food corporation has a program in nanotech or is looking to develop one".'* A 2004 report produced by Helmut Kaiser Consultancy, "Nanotechnology in Food and Food Processing Industry Worldwide", pre- dicts that the nano-food market will surge from US$2.6 billion today to $7 billion in 2006 and to $20.4 billion in 2010.'* In addition to a handful of "nano-food" products that are already on the market, over 135 applications of nanotechnology in food industries (pri- marily nutrition and cosmetics) are in various stages of development.'* According to Helmut Kaiser, more than 200 companies worldwide are engaged in nanotech R&D related to food. Among the 20 most active companies are five that rank among the world's 10 largest food and beverage corporations, Australia's leading food corporation and Japan's largest seafood producer and processed food manufacturer. (See annex 1.) Despite the obvious enthusiasm for nano-scale science and its applications to food engineering and processing, the food and beverage industry is generally conservative and cautious when talking about the future of nanotech and food. Most industry representatives interviewed by ETC Group declined to provide specific details about the level of funding and industry partners. We spoke to scientists at giant food and beverage corporations (Kraft and Nestlé) as well as university researchers and representatives from small nanotech start-ups (often one and the same). After witnessing widespread rejection of genetically modified foods, the food industry may be especially skittish about owning up to R&D on "atomically modified" food products. "The food industry is more traditional than other sectors like IBM [where nanotechnology can be applied]," explains Gustavo Larsen, a professor of chemical engineering and a former consultant to Kraft.’ "My take is that there are good opportunities and it's often more feasible to realise these opportunities [in the food sector]. You can make nanoparticles and use them in foods—you don't have to assemble them first."'*” When asked what he believes will be the first products of nanotech R&D related to food, Larsen said that consumers are likely to see packaging composed of nano-scale materials before novel food products. "I think the packaging is a safer bet," said Larsen. by ETC Group © November 2004 431 Gilmour Street, Second Floor, Ottawa, ON, Canada K2P 0R5 Telephone: +1 (613) 241 2267 Fax: +1 (613) 241 2506 Email: etc@etcgroup.org Website: http:/Avww.etcgroup.org Molecular Food Manufacturing Some people claim that in the future, molecular engineering will enable us to "grow" unlimited quantities of food without soil, seed, farms or farmers—and that it will wipe out global hunger in the process. Consider the following views: ¢"Nanomachines could create unlimited amounts of food by synthesis at the atomic level, which would eradicate hunger." — Carmen I. Moraru, professor of food science, Cornell University (USA), on nanotech's potential impact on food science'* * "Molecular biosynthesis and robotic replenishment may allow quick replacement of production, so we wouldn't have to depend on centralized systems to grow and deliver our food. In the first, primitive stages of molecular assembly, we'd build packaged by ETC Group © November 2004 431 Gilmour Street, Second Floor, Ottawa, ON, Canada K2P 0R5 Telephone: +1 (613) 241 2267 Fax: +1 (613) 241 2506 Email: etc@etcgroup.org Website: http:/Avww.etcgroup.org NEXUS + 19 NANO-FOOD AND NUTRITION, OR "NANOTECH FOR TUMMIES" AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2005 www.nexusmagazine.com