一探人類未來世界的10種食物(上)

When talking about food of the future, soylent green (the foodstuffs made out of people from the classic Sci-Fi movie of the same name) and grasshoppers leap to mind. Well, I don’t think most of today’s (or tomorrow’s) consumers are too interested in snacking on the remains of their neighbors. Nevertheless, the idea of what kind of foods we will be chowing down on in the not-too-distant future is interesting to explore; especially considering that we can expect an increase of over 2 BILLION people living on the planet by 2050. Just how will 9+ billion people feed themselves? Well, just consider the strides in food production and consumption that the world has experienced in the past 50 years. Where staples such as chicken and beef have been supplemented with genetically enhanced meat products, soybean and a host of other products that we consume daily, we can certainly expect even more dietary innovations to meet consumption needs. With this is mind, let’s take a look at the top ten foods of the future.

談到未來食物，《超世紀諜殺案》影片中的綠色食物和蚱蜢立刻浮現腦海。當然，我想現在（或者以後）的大部分消費者不會對鄰居們所說的零食感興趣。但是，對於未來我們吃什麼的問題倒值得探討，尤其是考慮到在2050年將將增加20億人口。90多億人如何養活自己？回顧過去50年裏我們糧食的產量和消費即可找到答案。譬如像雞肉和豬肉這樣的主食被基因性主食產品、大豆和一系列其他日常消費的產品補充。因此，我們完全有信心期待更多的飲食創新來滿足消費需求。那麼就讓我們一探未來10種食物風向標吧！

tarian Meat

10.素肉

The idea of "meat" consisting of ingredients that don’t include animals would have seemed pretty far-fetched not so many years ago. Today, we know differently, and the trend in this area will continue to Grow as population growth begins to outpace currently available food sources. Meat production is a huge and expensive industry. Vegetarian products, however, are cheaper to produce and tend to be healthier as well (great news for animal lovers).

很多年前， 人們還不能相信"肉"是指不包括動物在內的食物原料。現如今，事情則大相徑庭，而且這一趨勢還將繼續加強。因爲人口增長速度遠遠快於現有的食物供給速度，肉類加工業又是一個龐大而高成本的產業。相比而言，素食產品生產成本低且比較健康。（相信這對肉食愛好者是個好消息）

Most of us already know about soya products. Made from soya beans, these products have found some traction in Asia. Prepared properly, these products have a texture that is very similar to meat and, with some inventive seasoning, can provide a wide variety of flavor. Soya is just one example that is currently being used. Other innovative products show equal promise and look to be available in increasing quantities in coming years. This includes such products such as Quorn, a fungus. Yeah, I know – but hey, so are mushrooms and all kinds of stuff can be produced from that particular family of fungi. Anyway, Quorn is produced from a fermented fungus and reportedly taste very similar to actual meat products. Add in such products produced from the likes of lupines to wheat gluten, and a very profitable and practical source of food is available from non-traditional sources. Assuming that the products in question and other similar offerings can reproduce the taste/flavor of the meat products they hope to supplement (or replace); then we all might be wolfing down a tree leaf burger in the very near future.

它包括素肉（一種蘑菇）以及其他各種蘑菇、菌類。總之，素肉以發酵菌類爲原料，據說其口感和真正的肉類產品並無差異。在這些麪筋粉中加入羽扇豆之類的產品，可以製作出既賺錢又便宜的食物，雖然來源有點兒"非傳統"。如果這些素肉產品和其他類似的產品能夠如他們所願複製真正的肉類產品的味道，那麼有一天我們可能會狼吞虎嚥地吃下一個樹葉漢堡。人們都瞭解大豆製品，不過這些由大豆做成的產品在亞洲已經有許多其他作用。在適當的處理後，這些產品的混合物和肉就很像了，而且可以做成各種風味。大豆只是目前用於制素肉的一個例子而已，未來，還會有其他的產品也能做出素肉。

ured/In-Vitro Meat

9.非養殖肉或試管肉

It’s a true fact that a good deal of the world’s population is carnivorous. We like our meat. And while there are other products that attempt to reproduce the taste, flavor, and texture of meat (some successful, others not so much); the truth of the matter is that these products are still not real meat. Sometimes, we want a burger – a real, honest-to-God sandwich that began as a cow.

很多人都吃肉，這是不爭的事實。我們享受食肉。雖然有其他產品嚐試複製肉的味道、風味和口感（有些很成功，有些沒那麼成功），但是這些產品並不是真正的肉。有時，我們想吃一個漢堡——一個真正的有牛肉的三明治。

Fortunately, science is working on resolving this primitive desire in a manner that may alleviate the need for an actual animal. In-vitro or cultured meat involves "growing" meat. "Growing" is the best way to describe the process of tissue-engineering that is required to accomplish this feat. The method entails taking cells from a live animal, which are then used to grow…well…meat. I don’t pretend to understand the science behind all of this, but the idea is an interesting one. In fact, such a method could darn near resolve hunger around the world (theoretically). This idea is still in the development/research stage, but the potentials of a breakthrough are not difficult to imagine – ready-made meat products that are easily manufactured without having to deal with herds of live animals would be incredibly profitable. And for the consumer – we will have our meat!

幸運的是，科學正在從緩解人們對肉的需求的角度來解決人類的原始慾望。非養殖肉或試管肉有一個"培育"的過程，"培育"是描述這項工作的最佳方式。它需要從活物身上提取細胞，然後用於培育養殖肉。我並不明白它的全部科學原理，但是這個想法的確引人注目。事實上，這個方式從理論上講可以彌補甚至解決世界性飢餓問題。雖然這個設想還處於發展和研究階段，但是突破難題指日可待——這些肉易於加工，免去處理大量活畜的現成肉產品的麻煩，大大提高贏利，而消費者也能繼續享用肉類食品。

e

8.藻類

The first thing that comes to mind is, "isn’t this like eating fungus?" No, not really. One of the interesting things about this particular subject matter is to reflect on the various changes that have come about concerning food production and consumption. Just 50 years ago, the answer to the world’s growing consumption needs was the so-called "green revolution". Farmers were introduced to scientifically altered (hybrid) seeds and new types of fertilizers to enhance crops. As a result, farmers were able to grow twice as much as before. The downside was the need for more land and water (we use A LOT of water) – we are now close to a saturation point where traditional farming is prohibitive.

一提到食用藻類，人們的第一反應就是"這不就相當於在吃菌類植物嗎？"其實不然。關於這一"特殊主體"，其有趣之處在於它引發人們去反省回顧人類糧食生產和消費中發生的各種變化。大約50年前，人們急劇增長的糧食消費需求催生了所謂的"綠色革命"。農民們"被引進"了一些雜交種子和新型化肥以期提高糧食產量。最終，其糧食產量也確實翻了一番。在這樣的農業生產中，人們對水和土地的需求越來越大。然而，化肥和農藥的大量使用也導致土壤嚴重退化，人們大量使用水資源也導致了水資源緊缺。由此，"綠色革命"開始走下坡路。現如今，傳統農業令人望而卻步，我國農業生產也進入了瓶頸時期。

As such, producers have to figure out how to grow food in places that normally are not very hospitable to do so. Enter algae. Algae are microscopic organisms that have the ability to grow very fast. More to the point, they can grow in the sea, and even in polluted water. Seaweed and kelp, in fact, are forms of algae. While most folks have not had a cuisine consisting of what could be considered sea grass – these forms of algae could provide an accessible and affordable dietary option. The real appeal of algae is in expanding the dietary offerings that it presents and in the by-products (such as algae oil) that can be derived from this readily abundant source from nature. Hey – if blue whales and other marine life enjoy the stuff, maybe there’s something to it after all.

就農業生產本身而論，生產者的當務之急在於解決如何在不適宜耕種的土地上種植糧食。那麼，讓我們回到"藻類"這個話題上來。藻類屬顯微生物體，繁殖速度極快。它們可以在海水甚至污水中繁殖生長。事實上，海菜和海帶也是藻類的一種。然而，大多數人還沒"享用"過這些以"海草"爲食材而做成的"美食"——這幾種藻類食物可以算是一種方便人們獲取、價格實惠的膳食選擇。其實"藻類"的真正閃光點在於，它的"出現"擴大了飲食產品的範圍，而人們也可以從這種自然中隨處可見的豐富資源中方便快捷地提取並生產出一些副產品，比如藻類油。不妨試想一下，如果藍鯨和其他海洋生物都"享用"這些"食物"，那一定是有某些特殊原因的。

cts, Bugs, and Small Critters

7.昆蟲、臭蟲以及一些小動物

Truth is truth. We may not like it, but that doesn’t impact on facts of the matter. And one truth that can be derived out of a discussion about the consumption of insects, is that they provide a very good source of protein. And apparently, we need protein. But that’s not all. Of the various species of bugs that are eaten (well over 1,400 that are common), they all commonly provide a low fat, low cholesterol, and high calcium and iron affair. Yes, they can be a bit slimy (and crunchy), but they are good for you. While insects are not uncommon fodder in Asia, Africa and South America; the rest of the world has not really followed suit. This probably has a lot to do with culture, perception and need.

真理就是真理。也許你並不喜歡，但那也不會對真理產生絲毫影響。由"食用昆蟲"這一討論中我們可以得出一個真理——昆蟲富含蛋白質。顯然，我們需要蛋白質。 但並非所有昆蟲都如此。超過1400種臭蟲被人們食用過，它們爲人體提供低脂肪、低膽固醇物質的同時也爲人體補充豐富的鈣元素和鐵元素。沒錯，它們身體表面 黏滑且"不堪一擊"，但是它們的確對人體有好處。

Nevertheless, insects provide very little space to breed and generally inexpensive to do so as well. Add this to the fact that they can provide a nutritional meal, and we have all the makings of a new food group. Indeed, crickets, caterpillars, grasshoppers and June beetles are just a few of the favored multi-legged delicacies available. In fact, there are a number of advocacy groups that are promoting the use of insects as a dietary staple. They have a legitimate point, especially when one considers the shortage of food in many parts of the world. Insects can provide an affordable source of the vital nutrients that humans need to survive. Granted, images of fried grasshopper may not be dancing in your head right now, but very soon you may have a craving for chocolate-covered ants. Just wait.

儘管食用昆蟲在亞洲，非洲和南美地區並不常見，但在世界上的其他地區卻並不罕見。這大概與文化、認知和需求有關。昆蟲可以在很小的空間內繁殖，繁殖能力很強。你要試着告訴自己，食用昆蟲即享用"營養大餐"。如此，我們就又擁有了一個全新的食物分類——昆蟲。蟋 蟀、毛蟲、蚱蜢、六月甲蟲，這些僅僅只是爲人們所喜愛的"多腿（昆蟲）佳餚"中的一部分而已。事實上，不少支持食用昆蟲的組織正積極宣傳，鼓勵人們將昆蟲作爲主食。他們這樣做是有一定合理性的，尤其是考慮到世界上多個地區存在的糧食短缺問題。昆蟲可以爲人們提供人類生存所需的重要營養物質，並且人人都可以負擔的起（費用）。就算現在的你無法想像你吃着"油炸蚱蜢"的"醉人畫面"，但也許不久之後的你會吃着螞蟻餡的巧克力並且愛不釋手！讓我們拭目以待吧。

ood

6.海鮮

The basic problem with meat, is that maintaining the necessary livestock is becoming more and more unsustainable. One study declared that livestock took up about 30% of available land space on the planet, not to mention the greenhouse effect of their biological emissions. Additionally, well over 50% of grain production (a good chunk of available farmable land) is devoted to feeding livestock. Basically, with the ever increasing population, we simply cannot raise enough cows to feed all these folks.

肉類最基本的問題是讓"必要的"家禽變得越來越靠不住。一項研究表明，家禽佔據了地球上30％的可用地，更別提他們排放的二氧化碳對溫室效應帶來的"貢獻"。此外，超過50％的穀物類產品（種植於大片優質可耕地）用以餵養家畜。基本上，隨着人口不斷的增加，我們養的牛已經遠遠不夠吃了。

The sea, on the other hand, provides excellent sources of food that is much easier to cultivate/breed. And I’m not talking about a bunch of fishermen out at sea hauling in more loads of produce (images of the show "Deadliest Catch" and the movie A Perfect Storm are coming to mind). Rather, we are talking about fish farms on land – places where different types of fish are specifically bred and raised to be turned into a fillet (think Tilapia and Cobia). It certainly makes economic and practical sense. Seafood, of just about any variety, takes an enormous amount of resources to catch – whether we are talking about shrimp or crabs. The ability to produce these products in a more domestic fashion would make them more available and presumably cheaper for us, the consumer. And the wide variety of species that make water their home gives produces plethora of choices to market. The new open ranges will be filled with trout.

另一方面，海洋也提供了豐富優質的食物資源，而且更易於養殖。我不是要討論漁民們出海捕撈海產品（腦中立馬浮現Deadliest Catch 和電影《完美風暴》）。而是說在陸地上養殖魚類——不同種類的魚有不同的餵養方式，之後再加工成如羅非魚和軍曹魚等魚。養殖魚類經濟、實際。海鮮帶來了極爲豐富的食物資源，比如蝦或蟹。養殖海鮮在國內日漸流行，消費者會更易買到這些產品，價格可能也會便宜一點。海產品種類繁盛，消費者們也會挑花了眼。鱒魚隨後也會進入市場。

審校：由敬雯 來源：前十網