We know and take for granted that foods will look and feel like we expect them to. So it’s especially disorienting when food doesn’t give us that anticipated sensory experience. This week, we’re looking at food that is not as it seems. We’re peeling back the layers of texture, taste and technique that help some foods imitate others. First, we’ll savor the layered and whimsical field of artificial fruit flavoring. We’ll watch as food deceives, in the sinister world of olive oil fraud. And when it duplicates, like the food that’s stamped out of a 3D printer. Finally, we’ll consider some of the ethical choices facing the emerging meat substitute industry, which risks reproducing the same inequalities as “real” meat production.

Further Reading:

Browse the catalogue or reach out to Joshua Cobos through Dolce Foglia’s website.

For more on artificial flavoring, from blue raspberry to snacking, follow Dr. Nadia Berenstein’s work on her website, or follow her on Twitter.

To learn more about the 3D printed food projects at BeeHex, check out their website here.

For more info on the cell-based meat industry, check out episode 7 of Fields and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. (Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify | RSS)

To hear Beatrice Ughi’s full conversation on A Taste of the Past, listen to episode 362 wherever you get your podcasts. (Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Spotify | RSS).

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