by Clive van Heerden, August 6, 2009
Looking into the economics and politics of rising food prices and theories about impending food shortages led us to create the “food farm” to test peoples sensitivity to the issue. We wanted to develop something initially that would supplement the nutritional needs of a family living in high rise accommodation, without drawing electricity or gas.
The ‘’diagnostic kitchen’’ concept is a response to the global diet business and obsession with calories and fat free food. We responded to the “weak signal” that in the 30 years of fat-free food marketing in the US, the obesity level had soared. Creating tools that enable people to manage a healthy lifestyle based on the specific metabolic profile of individuals rather than generic standards seems essential. We also wanted to ask the question whether the kitchen, as an assembly of labour-saving devices which emerged in the 1920’s, will will be transformed into a collection of diagnostic and diet management tools in keeping with our lifestyle needs. Knowing what a food ingredient contains, where it came from and what it has been exposed to is more important than how likely it is to stick to the pan.
More from Far-future research dialogue by Philips Design here.
Go to minute 6:46 – Food For Thought part 3 – where the Home Farm is described.
And follow this link to see a video showing the day to day use of the home farming unit.
The great problem is going to be to sustain the balance of the eco-system. Jeff de Korn tried something similar 15 years ago in a greenhouse, feeding the fish on mosquitoes and other insects attracted by the light. Great idea but the system is very fragile…
Some alternative to sewage must also be found as a base nutrient, for wide acceptability. Compost offers one option.
But what a project for a home hobbyist! I reckon this is where the development work will now largely be done.
John Yeoman. https://www.gardeningguild.org