Global food insecurity is on the rise and is immensely impacted by global warming. Unfortunately, climate change continues to dramatically affect agriculture, fisheries, forestry, and landscape management sectors, and the responses to these issues are inadequate. Moreover, food production is a significant part of the problem as the global food system is responsible for roughly a third of greenhouse gas emissions, second only to the energy sector. It is also the primary source of methane and biodiversity loss.
In light of these concerns, designer Malu Lücking explores the potential of microalgae and macroalgae as regenerative aquaculture for food's present and future. Lücking focuses on the speculative design and biomaterial research and travels to the year 2050 to reimagine our food system.
In a pessimistic scenario, where the loss of agro-biodiversity endangers human health and culinary traditions' spiritual and cultural importance, Lücking proposes regenerating humanity's food system by introducing a new family of timely flavours with the project Landless Food.
The kitchen is transformed into a laboratory, and microalgae are cultivated locally and manipulated as edible gel-like objects. After just two weeks, the algae can be harvested and consumed freshly, making them an ideal primary food source.
Landless food presents six food objects as reincarnations of three types of lost flavours. While the shapes of the food remain partly unfamiliar, the tools designed to eat these objects relate to the probably long-extinct resources of the taste. The first outcomes of the Landless Food project are a line of seafood flavours and a floral spice.
In conclusion, with innovative and creative solutions like Landless Food, the food system can be regenerated, and our future can be sustainable. It is essential to acknowledge that while the issue of global food insecurity and climate change is challenging, there are ways to mitigate the problem by designing regenerative systems that support biodiversity and protect the planet.