Food Futures and 3D Printing: Strategic Market Foresight and the Case of Structur3D

Abstract

Our case study analyses 3D Printing and its contribution to food innovation. Our examination uses strategic foresight as a knowledge transfer tool for food industry planning. As a force for change, customization is a leading characteristic of 3D food printing in user-centred design. Broader societal and economic pressures for sustainability, human health and nutrition can be addressed by 3D food printing with bioplastics, recycling, and product customization catered to distinct market demographic segments. In terms of scale and competition, some 3D food printing companies will focus on customization at scales for purposes. At regional or national authority levels, innovative policies will serve vital incentive catalysts and support structures. Our case study looks at Structur3d, a Kitchener-Waterloo-based company, within a larger world of 3D printing innovation, science, and processing. We examine Structur3d in the context of food innovation at-large within an ecosystem of economic change and disruption, and consider the evolution of Canadian food business, manufacturing strategy and public policy in a global economy to meet rapidly changing societal needs in engineering, capital, material science, and action planning.